Brainlink International Advises on Disaster Recovery Planning - 10 Steps Every Small Business Should Consider.

1. Setup a backup website in a different state with a low cost provider. This can be a simple "brochureware" website that can double as an emergency communication site. Similarly, if you have a corporate intranet, make sure it, or a back-up of it, is hosted offsite.
2. Provide staff with broadband connectivity (DSL, cable, etc.). This boosts productivity during normal operations and provides additional communications channels during times of crisis.
3. Provide staff with back-up email systems and dial-ups hosted off-site. 
4. Improve your network and systems security. During a disaster situation your sensitive data and systems may be more vulnerable to attack by opportunists. 
5. Backup key servers and files regularly. Store them offsite, either with a commercial service or in safes at the homes of company officers. 
6. Corporate cell phones should be purchased from multiple carriers. This will protect your company from problems affecting a specific carrier as well as increasing the odds of being able to maintain effective communication during events that overload multiple systems. Additionally, key staff should also have two-way pagers as these devices can communicate effectively when the mobile phone system overloads. 
7. Keep an up-to-date emergency contact list for all staff. Be sure to include at least three levels of contacts on it - immediate family, close friends in town and close friends out of town.
8. Have an emergency fund available to help employees with immediate needs if paychecks are delayed. 
9. Standardize on AIM, ICQ or other instant chat services. When phone and cell services are down or blocked, this can be an effective communications tool. 
10. Computerize your records NOW! If keeping paper is a legal requirement, keep digital copies and backups both on and off-site.