The Tribune

BAHAMIAN and Caribbean businesses have been urged to swiftly reform their disaster risk management approach to cope with the potentially devastating impact of ever-stronger hurricanes.

The warning was delivered during the recent ‘CAT 5 ready: Business continuity in the eye of the storm’ webinar, which was hosted by Cloud Carib, the Nassau-headquartered data services provider, with panel contributions by CG Atlantic Insurance Agents & Brokers and Structured Bahamas. 

Historical data shows that Caribbean economies lose an average of 17 percent of their gross domestic product (GDP) in years when a major hurricane makes landfall.

Panellists pointed to Hurricane Melissa, which last year cost Jamaica an estimated 28 percent to 32 percent of its GDP, as a reminder of how rapidly a single climate-related event can disrupt national productivity and halt economic recovery.

"Across the region, hurricane preparedness is still too often treated as just a facilities issue or an IT issue," said Olivia Dorsett, Cloud Carib’s marketing director.

"The reality is that business resilience is a leadership issue. Organisations need to know whether their buildings can withstand the next storm, whether their data can be recovered, whether their teams can work, and whether their policies are adequate, when it matters most." 

 Moderated by Michele Marius, founder and firector of Jamaica-based ICT Pulse Consulting, the panel challenged companies to look past traditional checklists such as shutters, generators and emergency contacts to examine whether their broader systems and policies are genuinely ready to endure disruption.

Christopher Wells, structural engineer at Structured Bahamas, warned that many buildings in the Caribbean rely on outdated codes or construction methods that are inadequate for today’s increasing wind, water and storm surge levels.

He urged business owners to engage structural engineers early before a storm enters the forecast, adding that contractors and supplies disappear once a watch is issued.

Chaz Garraway, climate science engineer, added that while storms may not always be more frequent, warmer ocean temperatures mean they are becoming significantly stronger, wetter and more destructive, intensifying more rapidly and requiring businesses to build immediate redundancies into any single point of failure. 

Addressing digital resilience, Mark Arruda, vice-president of solutions at Cloud Carib, emphasised that technology is only half the battle as true business continuity must account for the human element.

He explained that, while a business may have remote work capability, staff may still be dealing with power loss, Internet outages at home, damaged residences or unsafe conditions.

To combat this, Mr Arruda stressed that companies must ruthlessly test disaster plans using table-top exercises and live system replication.

 “Insurance is not something you want to get when you need it,” said Gabrielle McKenzie, agency manager at CG Atlantic, adding that incomplete documentation, under-insurance and outdated asset valuations remain the leading causes of delayed or denied insurance claims.