Townsville wet-season tech checklist: protect your files before the power goes out

The best time to find out whether your backup works is on an ordinary day. For Townsville homes and small businesses, wet-season preparation should include the family photos, work files and contact details that become difficult to reach when power or internet is interrupted.

This is a preparation checklist, not a weather forecast. Use Get Ready Queensland and your council’s disaster dashboard for emergency planning and current local information. People and evacuation instructions come before equipment.

Start with the files you cannot replace

List what matters: family photos, documents, business records and the information needed to contact customers. Check where the originals live and whether each location is included in your backup. A folder on the desktop or files on a second computer are easy to overlook.

Keep a protected copy away from the same physical location. An external drive beside the computer can be affected by the same water or theft. If you use a removable backup drive, disconnect it safely after a completed backup and store it securely. Keep encryption recovery information accessible to the people authorised to restore it.

Cloud services can help, but check their actual recovery and retention options. A synchronised folder can copy deletions and unwanted changes as well as new files. ASD’s cloud guidance recommends backing up important information and testing recovery rather than assuming the provider covers every need.

Restore a few files before you need them

Use the backup application to recover a recent document, an older file and a photo into a separate test folder. Open the recovered copies and check their contents. Do not delete the originals to create a test. Our backup-testing guide walks through a small, controlled check.

Plan for power and internet interruptions

• Charge phones and power banks ahead of an expected disruption, and keep essential contact details available securely offline.
• For a business, identify who can update customers if email or the office phone system is unavailable. Test the fallback before relying on it.
• If you use an uninterruptible power supply (UPS), check its condition and manufacturer’s runtime guidance for the actual equipment connected. Plan a controlled shutdown; do not assume the battery will last through a long outage.
• A powered router cannot guarantee internet access if the upstream network is down. Mobile coverage can also be affected, so plan useful offline tasks.

Prepare equipment while it is safe to do so

Queensland’s Electrical Safety Office advises switching off and unplugging electrical equipment as a storm approaches and moving equipment higher if flooding is expected. Make these preparations early, while conditions are safe. Do not approach wet equipment, damaged wiring or switchboards during a dangerous situation.

Keep computers and backup drives away from floor-level water exposure where practical, without blocking ventilation. Label the normal connections so a safe shutdown is easier to reverse later. A UPS or surge protector is not a reason to disregard electrical safety advice.

After a storm, avoid the “just see if it works” test

Do not power up water-damaged electrical equipment. Follow the Electrical Safety Office’s advice and seek appropriate professional assessment before reuse. If a computer or drive contains irreplaceable files, tell the technician before any reset, repair or disposal is considered.

Once it is safe to resume work, check that backups have restarted, internet-dependent tasks have caught up and shared records are intact. Record any gaps while they are still fresh.

Townsville Computer Man can help with computer backup arrangements, restore checks and practical device support. Electrical safety and fixed-wiring work belong with a licensed electrician. For a wider business continuity review, Suburban Secure can help map the dependencies and responsibilities.