Small businesses plan for disasters

Published 3:26 pm Friday, June 8, 2012

A forum on emergency planning for small businesses will be held in Freeland next week.

The event is being put on by the Freeland Chamber of Commerce and begins at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, June 13. It will be held at the Whidbey Telecom building at 1651 Main St. in Freeland.

Puget Sound Energy and Whidbey Telecom are co-sponsoring the forum. Andy Wappler, vice president of corporate affairs for PSE, will be the event’s keynote speaker and will give a presentation.

Walt Blackburn, Puget Sound Energy manager in Freeland, said small businesses should plan for disasters, such as windstorms, snow and earthquakes, so their employees can get to work and serve the public.

“Make sure your people are ready at home so they can come to work,” he said. “Our foremost objective for the year is to promote safety and emergency planning.”

The forum is free but space is limited. To reserve a spot, call the chamber of commerce at 331-1980 or email freeland@whidbey.com.