Reality Alert: A summer camp experienced severe damage after a storm caused several large trees to fall. One tree landed on and destroyed a cabin and another tree struck the dining hall and caused major damage.

Fire Extinguisher Mistakes: While on a site visit in downtown Milwaukee, a West Bend loss control associate recognized a fire extinguisher in a restaurant kitchen indicating it had been discharged. This was puzzling because the fire extinguisher had been serviced only a few weeks before.

Reality Alert: A severe thunderstorm caused a facility to lose power for several days. While the facility was prepared with a standby generator, they ran out of fuel due to the length of the power outage.

Reality Alert: A fire completely burned a vacant building to the ground and caused severe damage to several adjacent buildings. Neighbors of the property had complained to the building owner about trash being left in front of the building, and police had recently discovered homeless people living in the vacant property.

A crisis can range from a drowning or medical emergency, to allegations of abuse or a violent intruder. In these unexpected situations it’s important to have a concrete communication plan in place. A well-designed communication plan can mitigate some of the damage and protect your organization from financial and reputational ruin.

Reality Alert: A sewer backup caused the lower level of a childcare facility to flood. Six inches of water resulted in extensive damage.

Real Life Claims: A facility in central Wisconsin was decimated by severe water damage after melting snow on the roof backed up through the shingles due to an ice dam. The ice dams had to be removed before any repairs to the inside of the building could be completed.