AN EXPERT in IT technology is warning businesses in mid Cheshire to protect themselves against disaster following a bomb scare in Northwich last week.

IT emergency planning expert Bridget Loulie, from ITQ Solutions, believes almost 80 per cent of businesses do not have a disaster recovery plan in place and is hoping the event will act as a wake up call.

She said: "To ensure your business survives a disaster, be it terrorism, fire, theft or a virus, people must back up their data.

"In a puff of smoke your data is gone. We advise people to store their data at three different secure locations so that you can retrieve all or most of what you lost."

Free emergency planning advice to help businesses with backing up their data is available by calling Bridget on 01606 782783.