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The Importance of a Good Emergency Plan

Posted on March 5, 2010 by Pam Faber
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The wind was howling. The rain was pelting the windows. Twigs and sticks struck the rooftop. My cell phone rang and the caller i.d. showed it was a client who lived 200 miles to the north and maintained a second home in Virginia Beach. Odd time to call, I thought, in the middle of the hurricane/no’easter now known as Nor'Ida, the storm that dumped significant rain on our fair city, brought severe winds, and caused the governor to declare a state of emergency for our state.

“Pam, the beach condo is leaking like a sieve! And it is not only mine! What do we do?” asked my client, also a member of his condo board, which board I represent. “Half the owners are there, and the other half are not. Absentee owners’ units are leaking onto some who are there. Can we go in? I can’t reach the manager, but the handyman is around.”

This phone call probably was repeated many times over that day, pointing out that many associations do not have and may have never thought about a formal “Disaster” Plan.

After all, some “disasters” are not natural disasters. For example, here are some questions to consider:

  • What about a gunman on the loose? -- Which happened in a nearby neighborhood to my own last fall.  Yes, we have a City police force, but some communities I represent have their own police forces.
    • What are the best ways for an association to proceed?
    • What if there is no plan?
    • Is there liability on the part of the board for the failure to HAVE a plan?

And what happens AFTER the immediate disaster passes?

  • Who interfaces with the insurance companies?
  • Who coordinates the insurance claim process as between the Condominium’s policy issuer and the individual owners’ policy issuers so that the facts are presented consistently?

Every association, whether condominium or property owners, should have an Emergency Plan. Consideration must be given to a host of factors such as defining an “emergency,” utilization of technologies and available resources, post-disaster safety and preservation, among others. If your association does not have such a plan in place, it should contact its legal counsel to assist it in formulating and drafting one that is both technically proficient and legally sound.

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