Giegerich Pitch - Emergency Preparedness

If a plane flies into a building, a crane falls into a building, or a fire engulfs a building, lives will be saved by heroes who are the most well prepared to deal with the emergency. But a building that is also thoroughly prepared for emergency situations can help the people who need to work with, or against, that building to save lives as quickly as possible.

Buildings in New York City are much safer if they have been thoroughly checked for safety hazards and evaluated with evacuation and emergency plans in mind. After 9/11, consulting firms and other companies realized the dire need for emergency evaluation teams and a new industry of emergency preparedness companies and evacuation planning firms was born.

I will profile one, or several, of these companies and firms to evaluate how effective they are, or have been since their inception and how building emergency preparedness has changed from before 9/11. My story will address how buildings in New York have become better prepared for emergency situations since 9/11, if that is in fact the case. I will also investigate how buildings have complied, or failed to comply, with the 2004 Local Law 26, which states that all buildings over 20 stories in New York must be equipped with emergency evacuation plans, and how emergency preparedness firms help buildings to do so.