Category: emergency management


Weathering the Storm: Emergency Preparedness & Storm Resiliency

September 9th, 2021 by

After last week's record-breaking rainfall caused flooding, power outages and widespread damage to buildings and infrastructure, the New York City Department of Buildings (DOB) released a set of precautions building owners and property managers should carefully follow when surveying storm...

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New York City Department of Buildings Logo

DOB Issues Advice to New Yorkers After Historic Citywide Flooding

September 2nd, 2021 by

Dangerous conditions may have been created in buildings affected by yesterday's record-breaking rainfall and unprecedented flooding from Hurricane Ida. The New York City Department of Buildings (DOB) has released a list of advisories that building owners and property managers should...

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RAND Principal and MEP Team Leader Peter E. Varsalona, PE discusses how RAND came up with a solution that saved the building hundreds of thousands of dollars and minimized disruption to residents with Habitat Magazine

Dealing With The Unexpected During a Storm Riser Collapse

July 16th, 2020 by

Built in the 1920s, 33 Fifth Avenue is classic prewar construction. It has some old cast-iron stormwater drainage pipes that run through the building. They collect stormwater on the roof and terraces and bring it down to the cellar level...

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Liberty House Condominium's newly upgraded emergency generator.

Emergency Preparedness: Building a Better Backup Generator

October 25th, 2019 by

Liberty House Condominium, a 239-unit, 27-story tower over looking the Hudson River escaped Hurricane Sandy relatively unscathed. The building didn't lose power like the rest of downtown Manhattan (Battery Park City happens to be on the Brooklyn power grid), and...

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Damage from the Chelsea, New York bombing.

The Chelsea Explosion: Surveying the Aftermath

September 21st, 2016 by

The terrorist blast that rocked Chelsea on Saturday night and set New Yorkers' nerves on edge was especially frightening to the residents and workers on West 23rd Street, where the explosion blew out windows and caused other damage to buildings....

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Installing an Emergency Generator

September 5th, 2013 by

With the hurricane season upon us and the first anniversary Super Storm Sandy approaching, many buildings in the New York City area are gearing up for another season of severe weather. To prepare for a sudden—and possibly extended—loss of power...

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Learning From Sandy

May 22nd, 2013 by

In 2013 Hurricane Sandy ravaged the New York City area, and the storm taught us important lessons about disaster recovery—and disaster preparation. I'd like to share some of my experiences working with several hard-hit buildings in the immediate aftermath of...

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Emergency Generators: Seminar, April 30

April 29th, 2013 by

As Hurricane Sandy made powerfully clear, property owners and managers need to be prepared for the sudden loss of power. In the aftermath of the storm, many buildings have installed, or are considering installing, back-up generators to provide electricity in...

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