Data Recovery: Hurricane Wilma

After Hurricane Wilma barreled through Florida, devastation was evident from the scene of the homes and their obvious destruction. What was overseen was the destruction caused to businesses in the area. In fact, I received a telephone call from a local business called Ace Mortgage Company. They indicated to me that there had been some water damage in their office. I told him that I would go there, and see for myself if I could help him recover the company computers and peripherals.

As I entered the building there was an incredible stench of mold and mildew. I had a difficult time believing that this was normal. I proceeded to go up to the top floor. As I got off the elevator I saw a long hallway with no ceilings tiles, water soaked carpeting, and about 15 heavy duty floor fans attempting to dry the hallway. As I entered their suite, I was taken aback at the site I had seen. All the computers and printers were on a table. They were purposely raised to avoid damage in the event of a flood. They were left running so some people could work from home after the storm. What was not anticipated was that the roof would start to break apart during the storm, and soak the ceiling tiles with water. Then, they all collapsed on the computers, and destroyed them all with water damage.

The key piece of equipment, an external hard drive, was completely wet, and it was shorted. Since it was a proprietary piece of equipment, I could not recover it myself. I sent the drive to The Capsicum Group for their evaluation. They were very professional, and indicated that it would be a little difficult since it was a proprietary operating system, and it was not supported any longer by the manufacturer.

I received a new drive three days later with every single file recovered and in perfect working order. I could not have been more pleased, and the client was ecstatic with the results. The Capsicum Group is the only data recovery service that I use and refer to my clients.

Tino Amoroso

Senior Vice President

DOCommand, Inc.