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Hi
Im in NSW. Our large complex of townhouses and apartments recently had an attempted break in. This townhouse which had no security screens was owned by a new SC member. As aresult the SC decided, without going to AGM/EGM, to install CCTV and lock the only pedestrian access to the street between the hours of 9pm to 6am. So, If someone needs to call police, ambos, firies they will have to walk out to the front gate ( up to 300 metres for some residents) to let them in.
My first issue is that they decided this at a monthly SC meeting. My second issue is the scary thought of emergency services not getting to aresident in time because they cannot get their vehicle or people in through the front.
Im hoping they are breaking some legislation/guidelines etc that can be used to force them to unlock this gate. But i just cannot find anything in all my searching.
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Aside from any useful advice others might give, I suggest canvassing as many of your neighbours as you can to get a feel for how many share your concerns. It might be that the simplest solution is to make it clear to the committee that they should reverse the decision because it has little support and considerable opposition.
The fire brigade will just destroy the gate if need be to save lives. They’ve done it before and won’t hesitate to do it again.
Nor will the police and ambos be gentle if there is an emergency.
As described the gate sounds partially complete. There needs to be a way for residents to view who is ringing the gate button for their residence and grant access to approved visitors.
Also, as it stands, any resident who is disabled might demand that there is a way for the gate to be opened from their residence if it is too arduous for them to make the long trek to the gate. And of course when it is raining no one wants do the walk.
Finally, why is it only locked at night? There are lots of break ins during the day.
Again, complete the requirements to make this a proper and secure gate and keep it locked 24 hours a day. There will need to be a method for the post person to enter to deliver mail but everybody else can buzz the resident they desire to visit.
We had a similar situation when the Committee decided they didn’t want large trucks using the driveway so they put a height barrier at the entrance, without approval from the owners. They refused to remove it until an owner who is also a lawyer put the case. IIRC the points he made were:
The owners own the common property, not the SC.
The owners have a right of access to ‘their’ property.
Any change that restricts that right of access in any way must be a decision of the owners, not the SC.The Committee thought about this for a while and reluctantly agreed, and took the barrier down. They might have got some other advice of their own, which would have been the same. The reason for the concern in this case was the impact that not being able to bring a furniture van to the front door might have on resale prices (a fire engine would have driven straight through the barrier).
What are the legal requirements for emergency services access? I have been told I have to organise and pay for my own key safe to allow access for emergency services to my apartment. This will include the cost of security air keys as well. Does the building have any responsibility for this and if ambos or police come to your apartment and break down the door who pays for the that? NSW.
In our complex we have made up sets of security fobs and master keys and dropped them off at the three local fire stations. The NSW Fire Department have good processes in place whereby when a call comes through from a strata or commercial complex, if there are keys registered and kept at that station, the fire fighters are alerted to this and they grab them on the way to the trucks. We left them (registered) at all likely fire stations to respond to us.
We had a resident who was very concerned that ambulance / police would not be able to reach them (locked front complex door and a secure lift) in case of emergency. We inquired if the same process as done with the Fire Dept could be done with Police and Ambulance, and was told no. As in many cases the police or ambulance unit that responds is already on the road, it is not practicable for them to collect the keys either timing or process wise.
We have a contractors key safe at our complex. We asked if we could provide the code to police / ambulance for this as a work around, and was also told no, there is no where for this information to be stored.
I am unsure who would have the liability to pay for a knocked down door in case of emergency, but when it comes down to it, if they need to respond in a life threatening situation, who pays for the door would be least of my concerns!
A couple of years ago I asked a fire chief what they would do if there was a fire in a flat and there was no one with a key to let them in.
“Then we’d use the big red key with the long handle,” he said.
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Hey guys thanks for the responses. They actually made me smile and were of help to me. Great ideas.
I was wanting to give the code of the key safe to the emergency alarm company for a medical emergency they forward all info as to how to enter a building to the ambos. I was not given this option unfortunately.
It is an issue though and some buildings are very difficult to get into. I have recently had a nasty experience and have had a family member bleeding out . When time is of the essence every little thing helps.
Cheers
Here’s to good health
I am unsure who would have the liability to pay for a knocked down door in case of emergency, but when it comes down to it, if they need to respond in a life threatening situation, who pays for the door would be least of my concerns!
We have had the ambulance come to our apartment four times in the last six months, there are three fire doors for them to negotiate. Each time was an emergency. That would end up costing around 12,000 in repairs for a pensioner.
We do make arrangements to keep this person attended as much as possible but there are always times when one needs to be away from the household. Common sense and empathy need to come into play unfortunately not in this case.