Best advice is to remain “C.A.L.M.”

Early morning, Sunday August 23rd, there was a serious fire just around the corner at 1055 West Catalpa (NBC 5 Coverage of Catalpa Fire), where 3 residents were hurt and 1 critically injured.

This is very close to home, and it is a good time to remember how we suggest residents respond in the event of emergencies – fire events in particular. Park Tower is quite a bit different than most our mid-rise neighbors to the west. For situations that may arise here, we ask resident to follow the City of Chicago Fire Departments  “C.A.L.M.” plan for high rise fires and emergency situations:

CALL 911 FIRST

ALERT Building Management/Staff and Neighbors

LISTEN For Instructions From Authorities

MOVE To Safety Or Evacuate, ONLY IF You Are In Immediate Danger

Call 911 First. When you call 911 make sure you provide accurate information such as address, unit or apartment number, and location of the fire or potential emergency.

Alert Building Management/Staff and Neighbors, only after you have called 911. Always provide accurate information about the fire or emergency situation so building personnel can direct the authorities to the emergency once they arrive at the scene.

Listen For Instructions From Authorities, which will be transmitted over the hallway speaker system or instructions provided via the 911 operator. Fire or police officials may also go door to door.

Move to safety or evacuate, only if you are in immediate danger, otherwise stay where you are and do not panic. Depending on the location of the fire, you may be asked to move a couple floors away from the fire floor but in most high-rise fires staying in place can be the safest option.

Management will also send announcements via Channel 195 and our e-mail list, particularly if we are requested to do so by first responders during an emergency situation. Join the e-mail list by sending a request to parktowercondo@dkcondo.com.

If you have any questions, or would like to request more information about our internal emergency planning at Park Tower, please send me an e-mail.

Special thanks to unit owner Tom Wartowski for providing the cover photo.