Make sure your residents know what to do if a tornado is about to strike.
Tornado season is winding down, but it’s a good time to take stock: Was your apartment community as prepared as it should have been?
Here are the essentials for ensuring that you, your staff and your residents remain safe if disaster strikes.
Choose a safe area for staff and residents to wait out the weather. Safe areas should be below ground — a cellar or a basement — or in a first-floor room with no windows. FEMA provides guidelines on how to properly reinforce a safe room.
Hold tornado drills. Don’t assume residents know what to do if a tornado is on its way. Make them practice evacuating the building and meeting in the safe area.
Have enough emergency supplies for all residents. An emergency kit should contain first-aid supplies, a flashlight, a battery-powered radio, a cellphone and its charger, and nonperishable food and water.