The catastrophic floods in Kwa-Zulu Natal should be a warning to all property owners to prepare in advance for the possibilities of a natural or other disaster occurring in their neighbourhood, which could affect their own home and family.

This is the view of Omar Kinnear, developer of ResidentPortal, a web-based communication management platform for residential estates and complexes.

Role of scheme management

Kinnear points out that, while management of disasters is the responsibility of emergency services, community schemes management do have a general duty to act in the best interests of their scheme.

“No one really wants to think about emergency situations and their consequences. Unfortunately, bad things, including natural disasters like tornadoes, wildfires, floods and mudslides, happen when we least expect them.   For this reason, I believe schemes should always have an emergency plan in place in case disaster strikes.”

Natural disasters on the rise

Natural disasters are on the rise globally.  According to the Ecological Threat Register’s 2020 report, there has been a drastic increase over the last half-century in the number of climate or natural disasters that occur each year around the world. The report states that there are currently 10 times as many natural disasters now as there were in the 1960s, while, a 2020 study published by The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) specifies that there has been a 35% increase in natural disasters since just 1990.

According to insurance group Aon PLC’s Global Catastrophe Recap report, in 2021 alone, the Table Mountain wildfire, flooding and other severe weather events resulted in economic losses of over $175 million (about R2.7 billion).  The road repair bill alone, in latest Durban floods, will be almost double that, at an estimated R5.6 billion, to say nothing of the 435 people who sadly lost their lives.

What can South African schemes learn from the US?

Kinnear believes that few, if any, South African schemes have Disaster Management and Emergency Plans.  However, they can glean very useful advice in disaster preparedness from countries like the US, where hurricanes, wildfires and earthquakes are common.

The state of Tennessee, for example, became one of the costliest states in terms of climate disasters in 2021, enduring no less than six different billion-dollar disasters, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Cedar Property Management, with offices scattered around Tennessee, offers some effective strategies that schemes can employ to become better prepared if disaster strikes.  These include:

• Prepare on paper – Create a current Disaster and Emergency Response Plan document for your scheme. A comprehensive document will address the “what-if” scenarios that inevitably arise after an emergency and streamline your board’s ability to respond quickly in the aftermath.
• Develop a disaster plan -Your scheme should develop a “boots-on-the-ground” plan that outlines roles and responsibilities of residents and management during the disaster itself.  This should include training sessions to provide CPR, fire safety, as well as neighbourhood watch programs and evacuation plan development. These crucial programmes can save time and lives in the event of an emergency.
• Make sure your insurance is current – Be sure that your scheme has the appropriate amount­­–and type–of coverage to protect against natural disasters that are common in your area, and even those that are rare.
• Always alert emergency personnel first – Neither your board nor your property management company is a substitute for an emergency response team. Police, fire departments, and EMTs are trained to respond to emergencies and natural disasters. Your estate manager is not.  A good rule of thumb during emergencies is: if you think you should call emergency services – do it. If you are at risk for loss of life or property, it’s always better to be safe than sorry.

Kinnear concludes:  “Since disasters can happen at any moment, the time to plan for them is now – especially if your scheme is located in high-risk areas where wildfires or floods are likely to occur.

“Having an emergency plan in place will ensure better peace of mind and could even potentially save lives if something bad or unexpected happens.”

ABOUT ResidentPortal

ResidentPortal is developed and managed by Sandton-based software consulting and development company, Business Xponent Solutions (BXS).  The estate communication platform is one of the products emerging from 20 years of experience in the software industry of its founder, Omar Kinnear.  One of the original developers of the SARS eFiling platform, Kinnear brings to ResidentPortal a wealth of knowledge of system performance and security.

Since 2016, more than 100 complexes are using the Free Plan of ResidentPortal, and over 1000 residents, mostly in and around Gauteng, are benefiting from the way the full-featured Standard and Pro packages are simplifying their lives in their estates and complexes.

For more information, contact:  Omar Kinnear, 078 798 3378

info@residentportal.co.za

www.residentportal.co.za

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