Three miles in one minute. That’s how fast the Carr Fire flames in Northern California were said to be travelling at one point as firefighters rushed to evacuate people and animals. Fire agencies made a public statement that they were no longer prioritizing saving structures but just getting people out — and fast. These were the early scenes of the deadly Carr Fire in Northern California as it barreled across a lake, over the Sacramento River and into Redding, a major city and freeway artery for the rest of the northern part of the state, Oregon and Washington.

The Carr fire was fully contained by the end of August 2018 and took a total of eight lives, including three firefighters, burning almost 215,000 acres, and more than 1,100 homes and over 30 businesses.

The aftermath of these historical events can have a large ripple effect, especially when you’re in the transportation industry and these events shut down major roads and freeways. For many natural disasters, much of the aftermath also comes from a loss of power. In the case of the Carr Fire, it knocked out a major transmission line that powered a large area outside Redding (more than a whole county). The county had an additional backup system in place, but it didn’t seem to hold and would go out for hours to days at a time.

Businesses with their own generators were prepared for even the back-up power to fail. However, these generators are costly to run and some businesses had to accept significant losses. For example, consider that standard generators work for most functions, but a large, commercial-sized generator is needed to power a grocery store, tire shop and so on.

According to the Small Business Administration, 25% of businesses don’t open again after a major disaster.

When you’re in an emergency, you don’t expect  the back-up power to fail. But as we’ve learned, it’s best to remember that at the end of the day, the world we’ve created is quite fragile. This means going beyond the emergency kit.

What Is Emergency Preparedness?

Emergency preparedness or disaster planning means being ready for the worst; it sounds dismal but it’s real, and you’ll be grateful you planned ahead if you’re ever in this situation.