ARDA-HOA Outreach
Emergency Plan
Starter Kit
Advanced planning is the key to any type
of natural disaster.
A. Is your property at risk for any type of natural disaster – hurricane, tornado, wild fire, floods, blizzards, ice storms, earthquakes or mud slides? Is their risk for other types of disasters – broken water mains, elevator failure, HVAC failure,
natural gas leaks, structural failure or toxic chemicals/gases?
B. What constitutes a disaster? A disaster is any event that has the potential for inflicting
widespread destruction.
1. Design an action plan to handle an emergency situation now, before you are faced with the responding to a real disaster.
2. Research what organizations and resources are available for assistance in your local area.
3. Your plan should take into account necessary steps for before, during, and after any emergency.
Where to begin?
Each property is unique. The probability of a certain type of disaster will vary from one resort to another. However, each event requires individual
consideration and each event requires a specific, well-written disaster plan.
We recommend that you copy or recreate this chart as a starting point for any planning discussion. Resorts should make a list of potential natural and man-made events based upon the likelihood of occurrence for your specific resort and area.
Sample Disaster Probability of Occurrence:
Most Frequent Exposure Average Exposure Infrequent Exposure
Blizzard Bursting Pipes Hurricane
Ice Storm Probabilities:
When developing a plan, consider the resort’s exposure to a specific disaster. In our sample above, hurricanes are
unlikely in the Wisconsin Dells; but for resorts in Florida, Hawaii and along the Carolina coastlines hurricane
preparedness is a must plan for event. Please note that events should not necessarily be excluded from the list just because they are unlikely, sometimes the unexpected can cause even more damage...like an ice storm in Atlanta.
Developing A Plan
Resort Managers, HOA Boards and operational department heads make up the leadership responsible for developing proper preventative and proactive plans. Creating a detailed written plan that can be easily reviewed and implemented is a must. If the plan is not written down, but kept in the
manager’s brain – may be of little value if a disaster strikes on that manager’s day-off or while he/she is on vacation.
Next, we recommend that you list people who should be included as part of your planning committee.
Did we forget anyone?
• Local fire department and law enforcement representatives.
• The association’s insurance company representative. • Utilities rep & a member of the maintenance department. All of these individuals may have important information that will assist you in your planning committee’s goals.
Ideally this group is set up as a standing committee that is responsible for the initial development of plans and ongoing maintenance of those plans including drills, regular updates, and plan reviews. And one of the first things the committee should consider is the budget.
Budget Planning
Why is this important? As your HOA develops an
overall strategic plan the importance of financial well-being and stability can be directly impacted by a catastrophic event. A resort valued at $50 million dollars with a 2% deductible would have to set aside $1 million dollars just to cover the deductible. Will your HOA cash reserves be
Insurance Planning
A resort and its owners association must evaluate its insurance coverage BEFORE a disaster actually occurs. During the review it must determine the adequacy of both the dollar amount and the conditions for exclusions.
A. An annual insurance review
1. The “deductible”
a. Will the HOA cash reserves cover it?
2. Exclusions, conditions and limitations
a. Exclusions that commonly require review are: wind-driven rain, sewer backups, flood, earthquake, window glass, and electrical panel destruction. An “all-risk coverage” plan that provides coverage for all disasters except those that are specifically excluded is appropriate for most associations. Look for “per occurrence” rather than “per structure damaged”.
3. Insurance companies will want to know how well you prepared, how you protected life and property and how soon you will be back in operation/business.
Some questions that will need to be answered in the Action Plan are:
1. What is the property’s current state of readiness?
2. Is there a working inventory of emergency equipment?
Your committee could spend a fair enough of time just in determining which items should be included here.
Some suggestions are: hard hats, safety goggles, flashlights, radios, two-way radios, fresh batteries.
3. What is the in-place answer to issues of no
communications, no electricity, no water and no food?
Please note that as a resort with public guests, water needs break down into three areas: most importantly for drinking, then for flushing and finally for bathing.
4. Where is the command center?
5. How will it be staffed and by whom?
7. When a threat appears, what elements of the plan
should be executed 24 hours ahead, 12 hours ahead or 4 hours ahead?
8. Is there a Disaster Master File, if not – create one. This is a permanent file of the resort’s/association’s data that will be of critical importance during disasters. Three types of information should be included:
A. Emergency Contact Information –
Including work, home, and cell numbers for all managers, directors, staff, contractors, insurance agents, adjusters, and various
professionals who may be needed in an emergency. This list should be updated semi-annually.
B. Physical Plant Information
Include brands, models, serial numbers and descriptions of all pumps, motors, appliances, pool equipment and lobby inventory. “As-built” drawings or schematics of buildings including utility distribution lines, sanitary and storm drain distribution systems and the locations of all cutoffs, valves, or switches so that utility service can be
interrupted when necessary.
C. Administrative Information
Include policy statements, important forms, computer backup tapes, actual disaster plans and other pertinent information.
9. Understanding that all emergencies cannot be planned for all at once, here are some areas that your planning committee may want to eventually address:
911 Procedures
Black(Brown)-Out Procedures Chemical or Gas Leak Procedure Crisis Communications
Death of Guest/Owner
Emergency Elevator Procedures Fire Procedures
Hurricane Preparedness Plan Robbery/Assault Procedures
Severe Storm/Tornado Procedures for Staff and Instructions for Guests
Emergency Contact Checklist Form
Date Prepared_____________ Last Revised_______________ Telephone Numbers
Day Phone Evening Phone Cell Phone Name Address
Ambulance Fire Station Police
Property Manager HOA Board President Employees Insurance Agent Insurance Adjuster Accountant Architect Developer Carpet Service Contractor, General Contract Services A/C Alarm Service Heating Fuel Elevators Electrician Engineer Glass Landscaping Lawn Service Linen Laundry Locksmith Pest Control Painter Plumber Red Cross Roofer Security Sewer Shelters Snow Removal Telephone
Temp Staff Sources Trash Removal
II. What is the Recovery Plan?
A. Phase One: Preliminary Assessment
1. Photos to document damage 2. Temporary repairs undertaken Guidelines for temporary repairs should have two important
considerations: Are people being protected and is further property damage being minimized?
3. Debris removal
B. Phase Two: Return of Operations 1. Insurance terms
You should have a significant understanding of your insurance policy coverage for both a complete shut down of the property and for any attempt to function but on a greatly diminished scale of operation.
2. Reliability and availability of contractors and supplies
Does your property have priority agreements with important advisors like a structural engineer which clearly describes that person’s
obligations and capacities to perform under emergency conditions? 3. What about the staff?
Which staff members still have jobs and job functions under the various scenarios? What will be their level of compensation? If laid-off, which staff members will be favored for rehire status?
The information found within this outline is
comprised of recommended starting points for the development of methods to deal with a wide array of situations. It is merely a guide to assist you in dealing with situations in a prepared, calm and uniform
manner.
III. Resources
2. National Insurance Consumer Helpline (800) 942-4242
3. The Insurance Information Institute (800) 331-9146
4. The local American Red Cross chapter 5. Your local Emergency Management
Agency (EMA)
6. Local and county government agencies 7. “Planning for Emergencies” 21 minute
video available through ARDA.
8. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) www.fema.org
9. Internet sources like –
www.weather.com/safeside
Final Thoughts
Thinking ahead requires serious consideration of insurance coverage, long-term advanced planning, action plans for before, during and after an emergency event, and operational/business recovery strategies. The best plan of all is the one your never have to
implement; however, if the day arrives and you need one – you’ll be very thankful the work was completed ahead of time.
This outline is based on a October/November 1999 Developments article entitled: High Winds and High Anxiety written by Marilyn Verner, RRP, Timothy Fisher, RRP, Deborah Wunder, RRP, and Luis Namnum.
