No Power/No Water - Hurricane Irma

[Greg Martin]

Hey everyone,

I have 3 units right in the middle of where Irma went through.  Most things were fine, except a giant oak tree fell over.  When it fell, it took out the power lines and broke the water line below it.  The utility company said that they will take care of tree removal and fixing utilities, but they don't know when.  Currently 2/3 of FL is without power from what I last heard, so they are saying it could be days or weeks.

Tenants are currently staying with family.  What is my responsibility, if any, in this, or how should I proceed.  So far tenants are pretty understanding, but I know as time goes on, that could potentially change.

Thanks in advance.  I know none of us want to deal with natural disasters, but I'm sure it's a topic that comes up as property owners.

[Deanna McCormick]

Until you have restored utilities I would not let tenants back into LIVE in the apartments,, no plumbing,, that's gonna be a big Poop problem, and NO electric,, is gonna be a safety hazard and issue,, no smoke detectors.. Let tenants know what progress is being made,, and that you will credit the days of non use off their upcoming rents..

Download your landlord tenant laws for your state,, this is a disaster not an average repair problem so understand what your rights are and what your tenants rights are.. 

You may have insurance coverage for loss of income,, but that ususally takes a period of time to kick in.

Post the building entrance, and each door to each unit   Permitting entry with notification approval by you only during day light hours and they will need to provide a flashlight.

If by chance you can string a source of power from a neighbor to light up hallways for emergency lighting try that.. We had huge wind storm that took out power to 36 units,, for 5 days..  we did emergency lighting in stairwells, and  hallways,, had to LITERALLY station a Live person in building 24 hours a day to do a fire watch because smoke alarms did not work.. PER the Fire Dept.. so keep that in mind.

Good Luck.