A Feb. 28 fire destroyed the inside of the Tyler County Booster office in downtown Woodville.

Computers and other equipment were ruined but the newspaper staff was able to salvage data from the charred and smoky hard drives. Hard copy documents and records stored in desk drawers and file cabinets survived with heavy smoke damage.

The newspaper building is structurally intact but the inside must be completely cleared and remodeled, general manager John Morrison said. The Booster initially relocated to a nearby working site to continue operating but hoped to be in temporary office space by mid-March. The remodel is expected to take several months.

The fire started just after 5 p.m. No employees or firefighters were injured in the blaze, the Booster reported.

Morrison said investigators traced the source to a stove top burner in the office kitchenette.

The Booster did not miss an issue and continued to publish using sister newspapers in Crockett and Livingston that also are part of Polk County Publishing owned by TPA past president Alvin Holley.

“We’ve got a good spirit and the support of the community behind us,” Morrison said.

The community responded with lots of advertising after the fire and at least one resident brought a cake to the displaced staff.

The fire is the second disaster the staff has dealt with in six months.

“We had good practice for this during Hurricane Rita,” Morrison said.

Tyler County was in Rita’s deadly path in September and the Booster was one of only a few newspapers in the area able to continue publishing.

Although the fire claimed all its equipment and most of its office contents, the newspaper was lucky to be able to retain most of its computer data and documents.

Disaster: Are You Prepared?

The Woodville fire should serve as a reminder to all newspapers of the importance of having a disaster recovery plan. Taking a few steps now can ensure a newspaper’s ability to continue publishing and recover more quickly after a disaster.

The Small Business Administration offers the following tips as part of its disaster planning toolkit:

· Develop contingency plans to remain in operation if your office, plant, or store is unusable. Could you operate out of your home or a nearby storefront? Could you quickly transport critical items such as computers, inventory, and equipment? Could you save replaced equipment and reactivate it in an emergency? Could you store inventory, equipment, and supplies off-site? Examine the possibilities, make a plan, and assure that you and your employees know what to do.

· Keep an extra of any hard-to-replace parts or supplies on hand. Store them off-site. If this cannot be done, work with suppliers in advance to assure a secure and adequate supply. Store several days’ supply in a place that is not vulnerable to the same disaster as your facility. Be sure to keep this auxiliary supply up-to-date.

· Make backup copies of all critical records such as accounting and employee data, as well as customer lists, production formulas, and inventory. Keep a backup copy of your computer’s basic operating system, boot files, and critical software. Store a copy of all vital information on-site and a second in a safe off-site location. Make it a critical part of your routine to regularly back up files.

· Make pre-arrangements with computer vendors to quickly replace damaged vital hardware. Keep invoices, shipping lists, and other documentation of your system configuration off-site so you can quickly order the correct replacement components. Take care of credit checks, purchase accounts and other vendor requirements in advance so that the vendor can ship replacements immediately.

· Surge-protect all computer and phone equipment through power and phone lines. A power surge through a telephone line can destroy an entire computer through a connected modem. Invest in a surge protector that has a battery backup to assure that systems keep working through blackouts.

· Maintain an up-to-date copy of phone numbers, computer and Internet logon codes and passwords, employee phone numbers and other critical information in an accessible location. Develop an employee “telephone tree” to rapidly contact employees in an emergency.

· Review your current insurance coverage. Is it enough to get your business back in operation? Will it cover the replacement cost of vital facilities? Make it a regular annual procedure to review and update insurance. Also remember that insurance on mortgaged property probably only covers the lender with nothing left over for you. Be aware of your contents insurance. Does it cover the replacement cost of critical equipment?

For more information on disaster recovery, log onto www.sba.gov/disaster_recov/.