Agencies Issue LESSONS LEARNED
FROM HURRICANE KATRINA:
Preparing Your Institution for a Catastrophic
Event
The member agencies of the Federal Financial Institutions
Examination Council (FFIEC) and the Conference of State Bank Supervisors today
announced the release of LESSONS LEARNED
FROM HURRICANE KATRINA: Preparing Your
Institution for a Catastrophic Event. The
booklet relays financial institutions’ experiences and lessons learned in the
aftermath of Hurricane Katrina that other institutions may find helpful in
considering their readiness for a catastrophic event.
Financial institutions face a wide variety of natural
disasters across the United
States that could have potentially
devastating consequences. Following
Hurricane Katrina, institutions’ existing disaster recovery and business
continuity plans generally worked well in enabling institutions to restore
operations swiftly. However, the
unprecedented destruction and aftermath of the hurricane caused major
disruptions that exceeded the scope of some institutions’ disaster recovery and
business continuity plans. Major
hardships faced by these institutions included the following:
·
Communications outages made it difficult to
locate missing personnel.
·
Access to and reliable transportation into
restricted areas were not always available.
·
Lack of electrical power or fuel for generators
rendered computer systems inoperable.
·
Multiple facilities were destroyed or sustained
significant damage.
·
Some branches and ATMs were under water for
weeks.
·
Mail service was interrupted for months in some
areas.
Financial institutions demonstrated great resiliency,
working together to create solutions that allowed them to successfully operate
under very difficult circumstances and to assist customers and communities in
recovering from the hurricane.
Insured depository institutions will soon receive a hard copy
of the booklet.
To download the booklet, visit http://www.fdic.gov/regulations/resources/lessons/index.html.
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Media Contacts:
Federal Reserve Deborah
Lagomarsino 202-452-2955
FDIC David
Barr 202-898-6992
OCC Bryan
Hubbard 202-874-5770
OTS Katie
Fitzgerald 202-906-6677
NCUA Cherie
Umbel 703-518-6330