Canadians have seen a wild summer, weather-wise. Southern Alberta is still rebuilding after the worst floods in the history of the province. High River, Canmore, Calgary and other communities in the area saw more than 100 millimetres of rain fall in less than 48 hours. A total of 32 states of emergency were declared and communities were placed under evacuation orders. Dramatic images of the floods were beamed across the country: the Scotiabank Saddledome submerged, Highway 1 washed away and entire towns cut-off by rising waters and mudslides.

Not even two weeks later, Toronto was nailed by a vicious summer storm. Again, Canadians were subjected to striking images, this time of thousands of people being evacuated from commuter trains by boat. Hurricane Hazel’s 1954 single day rainfall record was broken as the city tried to cope with what would end up being its costliest storm. According to the Toronto Star, private insurance claims have surpassed $850 million, with another $60 million in damage to the city, highlighting the city’s “inadequate storm water infrastructure.”

Climate change has made these catastrophic events more common and devastating – not a very encouraging combination. Though governments have admitted they need to update disaster mitigation plans to address urban flooding, it could be quite some time before any real action is taken.

Commercial property owners and managers need not wait for government assistance. It was clear to anyone on the ground through either of these disasters that buildings that had made emergency response planning a priority fared much better than those that didn’t. Every manager should take a long, hard look at the properties it oversees, anticipate where the risks lay and figure out what to do when disaster strikes.

Here are five steps to get started on a comprehensive emergency response plan.

1. Conduct a property risk assessment that covers all internal and external risks, including environmental, topographical and residing property risks (for example, the risks neighbours bring to a property). This can include entry points for water, drainage paths and maintenance of sump pumps.

2. Create emergency response procedures based on the risk assessment for various catastrophes such as flooding, fire, wind damage or power failure, including an emergency checklist for each risk. This should also include emergency contact numbers that can be accessed any time, day or night.

3. Partner with an emergency restoration company and consider signing on to a service agreement for emergency and disaster situations that provides priority response 24-7. The emergency restoration company should have national response capabilities and be able to provide equipment and manpower on a large scale. When a large catastrophe occurs, management should be assured that even though the restoration partner may be inundated with calls, it will have the capacity to respond. The restoration company must also have all the required provincial and federal certifications to enter potentially dangerous situations in a safe manner on the property owner or manager’s behalf.

4. Once this information has been collected, management can create an overall emergency response plan. All emergency support numbers should be included. They need to be accessible 24-7, regardless of location. The plan should also include telephone numbers for emergency responders, the emergency restoration partner, tenant emergency contacts, and city and municipality provincial emergency numbers.

5. Test the plan by doing a mock disaster recovery exercise or even a desk-top scenario exercise and, if possible, partner with a city or municipality exercise. Include external emergency response partners such as management’s emergency restoration partner, security company, cleaning company and any other potential support contractors. Review the plan annually and revise it based on exercise results.

By making emergency preparation a priority, property owners and managers can severely mitigate damage and loss caused by unexpected disasters, and maximize the chances of long-term viability.

John Stephenson is vice-president of property management services at Firstonsite Restoration.