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There have been many tragic stories in the news recently about emergency incidents in residential blocks and one thing is clearer than ever – fast actions and decisions save lives. 

We all know the procedures for evacuating a building when the fire alarm sounds and the fire plan will likely be posted in the communal areas, but if you have tenants unable to escape, how do you relay this information to emergency services?

When the fire alarm goes off, tenants will begin to follow the protocols put in place, whether that is to evacuate or shelter in place, and the emergency services will undoubtedly be called. When the emergency services arrive, they are faced with the impossible task of knowing who needs help and who is safe and will begin their own processes to enter the building and ensure safety as they are unlikely to have much information available to them. 

What happens, however, if your residential block is relying on a waking watch system rather than a fire alarm? It could be that the message is harder to get out, or it could take some time to put the plan to notify all residents into action.

One solution would be to use an emergency communication system that allows for two-way communication whilst providing assurances that messages are being delivered. If you enrol your tenants on an alerting system based on their apartment or flat number then if an emergency arises you can send messages quickly and effectively using pre-defined templates to everyone registered in your residential block. 

This way whoever discovers the fire, whether it is the person who sounds the fire alarm or the person on duty on the waking watch, can quickly and effectively start the process to notify all residents and keep them safe.

By collecting responses from residents, you can inform the emergency services response by informing them which apartments/flats require immediate attention to ensure that residents are safe. 

Using a notification system in this way also allows you to send updates to residents if the situation changes, and also allows you to provide the most up-to-date version of the protocols in place for the building allowing you to fulfil your duty of care. 

To find out how Klaxon can help you keep your residents safe and informed in an emergency why not book a demo today?