Collection of the top 10 business continuity disasters.

1. Top 10 business
continuity disasters

2. Top 10 business continuity incidents
In honour of Business Continuity Awareness Week 2016,
we set out to research some of the most disruptive
business continuity incidents in 2015 and Q1 2016. What
we found demonstrates that serious business disruption
can come from a wide range of sources. The following are
our top-10-ranked incidents.

3. 1
Holborn fire
09.04.15
An underground electrical fault
caused a fire that burned for 36
hours.
Source: http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-
london-32231725
What happened

4. 2
Kennington floods
29.06.15
A burst water main flooded
Kennington Park road with water 0.5
metre deep, affecting 15 properties.
Source: http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-
news/kennington-flood-delays-traffic-cuts-off-water-
supplies-and-damages-houses-after-pipe-bursts-
10352894.html
What happened

5. A burst underground pipe caused a
power cut and flooded the hospital,
closing the A&E to all but critical
patients.
Source: http://www.theguardian.com/uk-
news/2015/jul/31/royal-berkshire-hospital-accident-
emergency-closed-flood-power-cut
3
Royal Berkshire Hospital
power cut and flood
31.07.15
What happened

6. An issue with a power supplier shut
down the electronic baggage system,
leaving thousands of travellers
without their luggage.
Source: http://www.theguardian.com/uk-
news/2015/aug/04/heathrow-power-cut-luggage4
Heathrow Airport power cut
04.08.15
What happened

7. 5
The factory supplying 25 per cent of
the UK’s toffee apples caught fire,
putting neighbouring properties at
risk.
Source:
http://www.birminghammail.co.uk/news/midlands-
news/toffee-apple-factory-working-halloween-
10138692
Hampton-in-Arden fire
26.09.15
What happened

8. 6
Storm Abigail
12.11.15
An extratropical cyclone with 84 mph
winds affected 20,000 properties.
Source: http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-
highlands-islands-34794583
What happened

9. 7
Forth Road Bridge closure
04.12.15
A crack in the truss under the
carriageway caused the bridge to
close, diverting 80,000 vehicles daily
for 19 days.
Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-
edinburgh-east-fife-35165201
What happened

10. 8
Storm Desmond
05.12.15
An extratropical cyclone pummelled
the UK with 81-mph winds and severe
rain.
Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-35038617
What happened

11. 9
Storm Katie
28.03.16
An extratropical cyclone with winds of
up to 106 mph left more than
200,000 homes without power.
Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-
35909651
What happened

12. 10
Saltley Recycling Site fire
29.03.16
An accidental fire set 800 tonnes of
metal and plastic ablaze.
Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-
birmingham-35920013
What happened

13. What can we learn from these events?
• Storms are increasing in frequency and have the potential to
cost billions of pounds in damage.
• Whether man-made or natural, flooding is the most expensive
and prevalent issue to affect the UK.
• Less cataclysmic events such as burst pipes are also disruptive.

14. What can you do?
Put a solid business continuity strategy in place. Without a
plan, you risk negative consequences such as lost
inventory, reduced productivity due to employees being
unable to work remotely, property damage and the
all-important revenue loss.

15. Visit our blog to view
our infographic and
learn more.
Click the image on the left or
visit
www.itspecialists.uk.com/blog