If your business or operations has been affected by an earthquake or aftershocks, and your building or structure has been or is suspected of being exposed to ground movement, it is imperative to move quickly to assess damage and minimize damage post-earthquake.

Organizations with operations near the center of an earthquake should be mindful of the possibility of aftershocks. While aftershocks are typically of lower magnitude than the initial event, that is not always the case. Additionally, if structures have been jeopardized from the initial ground motion, these aftershocks could create risks to those structures—even if the aftershock is of a lower magnitude.

An initial assessment of actual or potential damage should be undertaken to determine if there are any structural or equipment integrity issues and the corrective actions to be taken. Marsh recommends the following steps:

1. Conduct an initial visual assessment of your building(s). Look for evidence of structural damage or the potential for structural damage—broken glass or windows, cracked finishes, bent wallboards, or actual damage to structural features of the building, including the roof. Keep in mind that that not all areas of the building may be readily accessible. Include in your assessment the infrastructure of the building, communications, gas supplies, power, and other production and support systems.
2. While waiting for this initial assessment to be completed, you may decide to temporarily evacuate the building, shut down some hazardous operations (such as manufacturing), and/or discontinue raw material supplies (such as gas, water, and oxygen). Taking these steps can help to minimize the risk of an event, such as a chemical release, as a consequence of the initial earthquake.
3. If you do not own the building in which your offices or facilities are located, or if you otherwise do not directly control day-to-day management of the building, it is important that you ensure that building management or ownership take the defined steps to quickly and properly assess potential damages and determine if the building is safe to occupy.
4. Only reoccupy the building and resume operation once the assessment has confirmed that the building structure has not been jeopardized.
5. If you see signs of potential structural damage, you will want to bring in an expert to assess if major structural damage has occurred.
6. If the assessment reveals major structural damage, your operations should remain shut down and your people should not be present in the building.
7. Carefully document all costs and operational impacts resulting from the event and your ensuing damage assessment activities.
8. You should pay particular attention to caulking and weather stripping to ensure that it is not compromised as Hurricane Irene approaches. Any evidence of damage, even if seemingly cosmetic, could be an indication of weaknesses that could be aggravated by wind, rain, and flooding.
9. You should also document any power or other service interruptions, including the time of disruption. If possible, you should determine if there is a specific cause of the disruption—for example, the planned shutdown of a nuclear power plant serving the Washington area.
10. Lastly, review your emergency response plans and determine any lessons learned from the event. It is important that these plans do not exist merely as a binder on a shelf, but are regularly reviewed and tested throughout the year.

Taking these steps will help you resume operations quickly, minimize the potential for further disruptions as a result of future events, help to ensure the safety of building occupants and employees, and support any claim recovery efforts.