Dive summary:

• Businesses that call coastal areas home need to take precautions so they can carry on with minimal disruptions when Nature brings disruptions, and commercial contractors can help them do it.
• Commercial structures need the right roof designs, materials and installations to minimize the risks that storms like Sandy pose to their operations, and they need to get dependable inspections and maintenance to keep them dry.
• Businesses, which includes contractors, also need a range of safety plans for themselves and their employees to avoid the fate that befalls a quarter of businesses that have to close for at least 24 hours in natural disasters – never reopening.

From the article:

Many people in the Mid-Atlantic region, who had commercial and residential structures that survived Hurricane Irene in 2011, believed they would be fine during Hurricane Sandy, so they failed to take necessary precautions. ...