How to Prepare Small Buildings for Big Emergencies

The Challenge

During the blizzard of January 2016, we received an emergency call that one unit in an 11-unit building we manage in Little Italy had no heat. Upon checking with the other residents, we determined that no units in the building had heat and only some had electricity. It was a Saturday night and the city was virtually shut down. We called the building’s boiler company and could not reach them. We called some other boiler companies that we work with, but because of the weather, they could not drive into the city, but were open to helping if they could.

The Solution

My partner, Michael Mintz, got on the subway and went to the building. Access to the boiler was through the restaurant next door or the courtyard, and both were locked. Michael walked to the nearest police station. The police could not help him and recommended that he go to a fire station. After the nearest fire station was unable to assist, he found a fire station on Canal Street that was able to help. He rode in a fire truck with the firemen to the building. The firemen were able to open the basement hatch and Michael gained access to the boiler. Michael got on the phone with a boiler company, and they walked him through what was needed to get the electricity and the heat back on.

The Lesson

Larger boiler and elevator companies have staff stationed in the city who deal with emergencies. Smaller buildings tend to use smaller vendors and don’t receive this type of emergency service. What do you do when you’re a smaller co-op or condo that can’t afford some of the larger vendors that provide full service? We talk to smaller buildings about having a relationship with a super, a handyman, or a porter from a neighboring building to handle emergencies. We also recommend that smaller buildings consider hiring a maintenance company to provide those services. They will then have a go-to company that has plumbers, electricians, and other services at their disposal.