Dear Friends, we all had quite a night at Palermo, as the power went completely out for hours. No electricity in our homes, no street lights, and no way in or out of our community. The electric gates were shut and without power, so emergency vehicles apparently couldn't easily get in and we Palermo residents could not get out. Palermo residents and visitors camped out on both sides of the main gate in their cars and did some bonding, according to an e-mail just received. Now that's the Palermo spirit! A silver lining to everything. But Miss Penny Lane must ask: Shouldn't the gates have emergency back-up power for everyone's safety, and where was security tonight?
6/11 UPDATE — The paper reported Friday morning: "Two power outages that began Thursday night continued to affect Southern California Edison customers in the Coachella Valley early Friday. The larger of the two outages initially cut power to about 1,600 customers in Palm Springs at 10:35 p.m., Edison spokesman Steve Conroy said. Just after midnight, power was restored to more than half of the customers affected by the outage, leaving 530 customers in the dark in a neighborhood near Highway 111 and Gateway Drive. Crews hope to restore power to those homes by 6 p. m. Friday ... both outages were caused by equipment problems, but it was unknown if strong winds played a role."
6/15 UPDATE — Please click on the reader comments below. A Palermo resident contacted the Palm Springs Fire Department about this alarming situation involving our health and safety during power outages. The answer may shock you.)
P.S: Miss Penny Lane gives a big hug to the Palermo resident who emailed in the above picture of the scene at the Palermo main gate.
P.S: Miss Penny Lane gives a big hug to the Palermo resident who emailed in the above picture of the scene at the Palermo main gate.
15 comments:
Damn, glad we don't have to wait until 6 o'clock to get the juice back on here.
You mean the gates didn't open when the power went out. What if a fire truck and EMTs had to get in here?????
This problem needs quick fixing. It also shows why we need HOA board members who live here, to help out wen this happens.
I THOUGHT THE LIGHTS WERE GONING TO GO OUT FIR NITE. I WAS READY. BET THE GATE STILL WOULDN'T OPEN IF THE POWER WENT OUT>
WTF?? Above
Penny, I am looking at a unit to buy at Palermo and was wondering what the electric bills run during the high and low months. Also, are you able to install ceiling fans? I love your blog site and hope you will respond back to me. My email address is mchamil@smartcornermail.com
Many units have ceiling fans in the living rooms and dining areas. Some of those tall glass units have fans on the 20-plus foot tall ceilings. About the gate: That problem needs to be fixed before the HOA board gets sued because someone could not get in/out during an emergency. People were locked in/out for two hours the other night when the power went off.
HAVE THEY FIXED THE GATE so it works if the power goes off?
I contacted the fire department and this was what they said:
"Dear Mr. Miller,
Prior to the receipt of your email, I was contacted by your property management company on this issue. There are no requirements for access gates to be supplied with emergency backup power. The fire department can always force entry through these gates in the event of an emergency during a power outage. However, it is good planning for the HOA to have a mechanism in place to have access gates manually opened (by someone familiar with the procedure) in the event of a prolonged outage. Feel free to contact me if you have additional questions.
Ron Beverly, C.F.I.
Captain / Deputy Fire Marshal
Palm Springs Fire Department
President, Riverside County Arson Task Force
300 N. El Cielo Road
Palm Springs, CA 92262"
The HOA board needs to GET RIGHT ON THIS before there's a disaster. What if someone had a heart attack and help was delayed because they had to break through the gate. And how are they even going to get to the gate quickly if there are a bunch of cars parked in front of it waiting for the power to come back on? We've put up with much fumbling by this board but guys this is serious!!!!
Any update on this? A back-up system in place?
I would like the HOA or DRM to send out a note about this situation and let us know if it is being corrected. I wonder though if they even know about it, since they are never here (the board nor DRM). No board members live here so they are ignorant of what is often happening.
still nothing from management on this. Communcation, anyone?
the gates can be opened manually. I was leaving that morning to go to NOCAL and someone in the complex before me went over to the units and flipped a switch and they manually opened right up.
Really, even if the power is off?
Post a Comment