there was some miscommunication, I calmly stated that there had to be a mistake. I was watching that fire first hand from my rooftop “aerie” and it was not one of our buildings. Having just returned from out of town, I was not aware that, almost overnight, we had started managing this building. Baptism by fire… literally!!
Being one of the first responders for management, I raced to the site of the fire to begin implementing the emergency/ disaster plan with the company president. First, just trying to get to the site was challenging. The only recourse was driving the wrong way on one way streets and taking short cuts down alleyways. Nothing could have prepared me for what I saw. Located near a typical Chicago six cornered intersection, the streets surrounding the building were totally blocked with fire trucks, ambulances and television news crews. Looking skyward just hoping all would be okay, I noticed helicopters hovering over the site. This fire was huge!
Getting to the site, initially I couldn’t even find the president. I eventually located him standing off to the side. As I approached, the Fire Commander came up and told us we were not to move from where we were standing. We were the command center. We immediately began working with the Fire Department to set up our on-site emergency procedure. Anyone approaching the building would be sent to us to handle.
The Fire Department was evacuating residents, some on stretchers. Even the residents’ pets were evacuated.
Fortunately, one of the first tasks of being the new management company was to create emergency/evacuation protocols and document building system information. Having that information on hand at the building ensured “safety first” for the residents.
Resident safety has many facets – life safety and quick evacuation being the priority. We knew which residents required assistance and who had special needs. This information was immediately given to the Fire Department. The intricacy of a building’s systems impact safety factors. We had information on equipment controls, floor plans, etc., that was immediately useful for the fire department. This data also allowed us to analyze what would need to be repaired once the fire was struck.
Communication with board members and residents, property stabilization and repairs to damaged areas were immediately underway. Bringing all these different elements together started phase two.
The on-site management first responders simultaneously had to set up a crisis command center and begin coordinating the recovery plan with main office personnel. The main office team leader immediately assigned personnel to handle different tasks. First and foremost was to notify the board members, all residents, and the building’s insurance agent and get the disaster recovery crew to the building. The recovery company arrived in record time.
12 | COMMON INTEREST®
A Publication of CAI-Illinois Chapter
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