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North East warned about battered buildings

Businesses in the North East are being warned about potential problems following this week’s storms and quakes.

The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) says home and commercial property owners should check carefully for tell tale signs of structural damage.

Jennifer Welch, Durham-based operations director for RICS North East, said: “Wind speeds were recorded at 80 mph in some areas, which is more than capable of causing real damage, and shockwaves from the Lincolnshire earthquake were felt across the region.”

In addition, Teesside based disaster recovery experts MC Ware are warning businesses about protection for their computer network should disaster strike.

Jonathan Wheatley of MC Ware said: “Thankfully the earthquake caused minimal damage but it is events such as this that should give managers a wake up call. Most businesses rely on their IT network for survival and so protecting the company’s computer network is one of the most critical elements of business planning. These days we are more susceptible to floods and other extreme weather conditions, terror attacks and potent computer viruses not to mention fires, theft and human error.

“To make sure a business can get back to normal quickly following a disaster, whatever the scale, we recommend storing all data off site and running a mirror system of the network so that the user doesn’t have to do anything at all themselves. Virtual technology is the safest way to ensure that a company is back up and running as swiftly as possible.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .