Castle Group Holds Hurricane Preparedness Seminar For 120 Property Managers
Event Featured Practical Information to Keep Residents Safe During Emergencies
Since June 1st marks the beginning of hurricane season, the Castle Group, one of Florida’s largest property services companies, hosted its annual hurricane preparedness seminar for 120 property managers and building chief engineers. Castle Group manages more than 200 condominium and single family Community Associations in Florida, representing more than 60,000 units and about 150,000 residents.
The objective of the seminar was to disseminate the most current information and emergency processes for the communities they manage. Experts were on hand to discuss safety in the workplace during an emergency situation, fire evacuation in community and high-rise buildings, and crisis communication to residents and the media.
“Repetition is the mother of skills,” said Rob Donnelly, Castle Group Chief Operating Officer. “Everyone here has gone through this before. When an event takes place, they will be ready.”
The message of the seminar was to be prepared, communicate and execute plans. Guest speakers included Sandra Lluis, Administrative Battalion Chief Pembroke Pines Fire Prevention Bureau, who discussed having a comprehensive emergency evacuation plan; Matt Sacco, Director of Public Relations, BankAtlantic Center, who discussed crisis communication to residents and the media; Gary Friedman, Broward Emergency Management Division, Vergi. Bain, Compliance Assistance Specialist, OSHA. After each speaker, the managers and building engineers held roundtable discussions about the topics and shared their experiences.
“The most valuable take-away was the roundtable discussions,” noted Donnelly. “The team is engaged and they are learning things from each other that they can incorporate into their own emergency plans.”
