In January 2025, wildfires destroyed large areas of the Los Angeles area, including the Pacific Palisades, Topanga and Malibu.
As the flames quickly engulfed the region, Terri Harmon, regional vice president of Atria Senior Living, a group of senior living communities, was notified that the fires were approaching Atria Park of Pacific Palisades, an assisted living and memory care community. About 10 miles away, before the evacuation order had been issued, she headed to the facility.
The emergency preparedness team had gathered, notified families, called buses, prepared hotels and put in process its emergency plan, which is required to be in place for every senior living community.
Local fire and police departments were checking in with the community’s emergency team regularly, and the plan for evacuation that is practiced throughout the year was in full operation.
“The fire started at about 10 a.m., and by 3:30 p.m., all 39 residents were safely evacuated,” Harmon says.
Not every evacuation or emergency plan proceeds as smoothly as this.
In July 2025, a five-alarm fire broke out at a Fall River, Massachusetts, assisted living facility. It’s believed that the sprinkler system may have been compromised, a no smoking policy may not have been enforced and the facility was understaffed and poorly maintained. Prior to the fire, it had been cited for abuse and neglect of its residents. Some have said that a good emergency plan didn’t exist and that staff training and fire drills hadn’t been carried out.
When your loved ones are in a senior living facility, it’s important to know how to check if the facility’s emergency preparedness response plan is going to keep your loved one safe.
Why Residents of Senior Living Facilities Are Vulnerable
While it’s important in any living situation to be prepared for emergencies and natural disasters, it’s especially important at senior living residences where the population is more vulnerable for the following reasons:
— Mobility issues. Older adults often suffer from mobility issues — such as difficulty walking, transferring and moving — that not only make it difficult to perform activities of daily living, but can make it difficult to respond quickly to emergencies.
— Cognitive impairment and conditions. Cognitive issues and conditions, like dementia, can affect a resident’s ability to understand directions and recognize hazards, which can increase the risk of injury and getting lost.
— Vision and hearing loss. These visual and auditory impairments are common among seniors and can make senior residents more vulnerable during emergencies.
— Medical conditions. Many older people have medical conditions — like arthritis, osteoporosis and diabetes — that can make emergency response more difficult and evacuation more complicated.
— Medications. Access to medications for health conditions during an emergency can impact the well-being of a senior during an emergency or evacuation.
— Social isolation and limited support networks. Social isolation can make it more difficult for seniors in facilities to recover and cope following a disaster or emergency.
[Read: What Is Life Like in Assisted Living?]
Common Emergencies and Disasters That Affect Senior Living Facilities
Some emergencies and disasters, like systems failures and infectious disease outbreaks, can be common among all senior living facilities, while other types of emergencies can be more specific to location. In California, for example, there is more focus on preparedness for earthquakes and wildfires than in other parts of the country.
“Emergency preparedness has evolved. We’re now doing drills for emergencies, like active shooter situations and cybersecurity malfunctions,” says Deborah Messina, chief operating officer at RiverSpring Living in New York City. “We’re constantly assessing and reassessing situations for which we need to be prepared.”
Some of the most common emergencies for which senior living facilities should be prepared include the following:
| Emergency | Examples |
| Weather | Extreme heat and extreme cold |
| Natural disasters | Hurricanes, floods, earthquakes and wildfires |
| System failures | Electrical, water, telephone, gas and other power outages |
| Community-related disasters | Water main breaks, power/electrical outages and fires |
| Health crises | Epidemics, pandemics and localized outbreaks of disease |
| Cyber threats | Sensitive resident information and the disruption of operations |
[READ: How to Pay for Senior Living]
Effective Emergency Preparedness Plan Components
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services requires all Medicare and Medicaid providers and suppliers to have emergency preparedness plans in effect. State governments are responsible for overseeing, regulating and enforcing those plans.
“A good plan can reduce the impact of disasters and keep residents safe,” says Barry Zeltzer, chief executive officer of the Hattie Ide Chaffee Home in Riverside, Rhode Island.
The following are the steps necessary to create an effective emergency/disaster preparedness plan:
1. Risk assessment
The first part of an emergency/disaster preparedness plan consists of identifying potential and likely hazards and analyzing what could happen in each situation. Each has many possible scenarios that should be considered.
2. Emergency response team
Emergency response teams should include staff from every department of the facility, including administration, nursing and maintenance. Each person should be assigned and expected to be responsible for specific tasks, and with practice those tasks should become familiar.
“It’s important to have an incident command team that covers every shift with several people being trained in each role,” Zeltzer says.
3. Communication plans and strategies
Strategies for communicating during a disaster need to be devised so that they’re in place before there’s an emergency. These plans should include how to be in touch with families of residents to share information and instructions and ensure that the staff have a system for communicating with one another and with outside emergency services. In addition to a primary plan, there should always be a backup plan.
4. Evacuation plan
Any evacuation plan for a senior living facility should take into consideration mobility limitations and cognitive impairment issues of residents. It’s important to know which residents require special assistance.
Partnerships with community facilities, such as transportation and supply companies, and other housing facilities should be part of any plan.
Detailed evacuation routes should be determined, gathering points should be identified and procedures for accounting for all residents and staff need to be put into place. All staff should be familiar with these plans.
5. Sheltering in place procedures
For emergencies involving security threats, hazardous materials and severe weather, plans for how to seal off the facility to outside contaminants and threats should be put into place.
6. Resource management
Every senior living facility should be stockpiling items that are necessary to sustain residents for extended periods of time.
An inventory of medical supplies, food, water and backup power systems should be taken regularly. It’s important to stockpile essentials — like food, water and medications — that are essential for residents to survive for extended periods of time.
Senior living facilities should partner and plan with local suppliers.
7. Training and testing
Each member of the staff of a senior living facility should be trained in the procedures to be used during an emergency or evacuation. Practice drills to determine readiness and what needs to be improved should cover all types of emergencies that could occur, including fires, evacuations and lockdowns.
Drills should include scenarios in which certain staff members are unavailable, forcing others to assume leadership roles.
After each drill or actual event, an evaluation of what worked well and what needs to be improved should be made. Feedback from staff, residents and families should be solicited.
Every training activity needs to be documented.
8. Special needs
Zeltzer says you must look at your special needs population and determine if they fit into your emergency preparedness plan. If they don’t, you’ll need to revise that plan for residents with disabilities and cognitive impairment who may require additional assistance.
9. Coordinate with local emergency management agencies
To be better prepared, a senior living facility should coordinate with local fire departments and health departments and facilities.
Participating in community drills and training programs will help keep a facility informed about available resources and best practices.
10. Documenting the plan
A senior living facility’s emergency preparedness plan must be documented, accessible and should include floor plans showing exits, alarm pulls and fire extinguishers.
Local emergency response agencies will perform routine reviews of the plan. A copy of the plan should be at every nurse’s station and at the reception area.
[Read: 7 Signs It’s Time to Move to a Senior Living Facility]
How To Evaluate Emergency Preparedness at a Senior Living Facility
A plan is only as good as its execution. It’s important when touring senior living facilities to ask how often emergency plans are evaluated and updated. You should also ask how often emergency drills are conducted.
As part of your senior living tour checklist, be sure to talk with other staff members in addition to your guide and ask questions about safety protocols.
Here are some important questions to ask:
1. Can I see your emergency preparedness plan? The plan is public information and should be readily available in many locations. In some states, health department regulations require the plan to be posted on the community’s website.
2. What is the facility’s staffing ratio? Staffing ratios will vary by the type of community and levels of care offered. Each state’s health department provides minimum staffing ratios for clinical staff, such as nurses and aides, to make sure these requirements are met and that staff is appropriately increased for populations with special needs. You’ll want to know if there are enough staff to ensure safety.
3. Are there designated security personnel on all shifts? Some states have requirements for how many security personnel should be on a shift, and others don’t. However, it’s vital that not all security personnel are on the same shift. Trained security personnel need to be placed on every shift to ensure safety at all times.
4. How often are staff trained in emergency preparedness? Every new employee should receive emergency preparedness training, and all staff members should receive ongoing training at specified intervals throughout the year.
5. What is the smoking policy? When thinking about fire safety, asking if there is a smoking policy for residents is very important.
6. Do you have an agreement with local facilities to help in case of emergency or evacuation? Have arrangements been made with other facilities for housing in case of an evacuation? Is there a plan for transportation for residents in case of evacuation? Do you have arrangements with food and water suppliers in case of evacuation?
7. Is there a generator? A generator helps keep people safe and healthy during weather concerns and power outages. Generators allow the continued use of medical equipment, electronic medical records and computer system functions as well as heating, cooling and refrigeration.
8. How does the facility communicate with families and each other during an emergency? Are there phone trees? Is social media used? Are emails used? Is the website used?
It’s important to visit the facility more than once at different times of the day. This will enable families to see staffing levels at various times and days of the week.
Red Flags
Some red flags that should concern you when determining the safety of a senior living facility:
— Continuing staff turnover. Asking how long a staff member has been with the organization is an important question. Stability of staff can provide a certain level of comfort. Staff training and education is critical for preparedness and experience in an emergency is invaluable.
— Staff unclear about emergency procedures. If you ask a staff member what the first thing they do in the case of an emergency and it doesn’t match what another staff member says, that could be cause for concern.
— Facility ratings aren’t posted. Ratings and past health department survey results should be posted for all to see. Hesitation to readily supply this information should be cause for concern.
— Public areas, resident rooms, hallways and dining areas in poor condition. Clutter and no clear paths of exit should be concerning. Additionally, lack of appropriate signage including emergency evacuation routes, indication of the use of oxygen or patient isolation may cause confusion among emergency responders, residents, staff and families in the event of an emergency.
Bottom Line
With the rise in natural and human-made disasters, it’s important when looking at senior living facilities to determine how well prepared they are for emergencies and disasters. You’ll rest easy knowing that you or your loved one will be as safe as possible.
Educate yourself before visiting a facility so you know what to look for and what questions to ask.
“When we think about safety and emergency preparedness, we want to have peace of mind knowing that we have done everything possible to ensure everyone is safe in our facility,” Zeltzer says. “There are no shortcuts when planning and preparing for an emergency.”
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How to Evaluate a Senior Living Facility?s Emergency Preparedness originally appeared on usnews.com
