The Grand sprang into action to safely evacuate all residents when a nearby fire threatened the community.

Emergency Evacuation of 243 units
On an early Friday morning in July, a seven-story construction development project in Oakland, California caught fire. The massive four alarm blaze threatened nearby buildings, including Essex community The Grand, requiring immediate evacuation of the entire neighborhood.

The evacuation effort began while most residents were still sleeping. Leasing Specialist Saif Jivani, who lives on-site, and Community Manager Joseph Scott, who lives nearby, began evacuation procedures right away. 

Saif used the emergency speakers to communicate to each apartment that a fire was under way and evacuation was necessary. Once the building was cleared, the team assembled residents in a safe area and took roll-call to ensure that all were safely accounted for. Of Saif, one resident admired that he "was able to pick out individuals in the sea of 500 people, and knew which apartment they were in."

Fortunately, there was no significant damage to the community, and no residents were harmed during the event.

Waiting to Return Home

Initially, authorities estimated that it could take up to 5 days until residents would be allowed to return home. During this uncertain period, the entire team — including Yerania Torres Farias, Amalia Torres-Leon, Juvencio Centeno, Tony King, Jerry Maple and Nicole Conrad — assisted residents and kept them up-to-date on the situation.

Thankfully, authorities confirmed that residents could return home the next day, Saturday, at 8:30 p.m. To support the transition, The Grand team stayed on site that evening until all residents returned. Staying until well past 11:00 p.m., relieved residents were greeted with a warm smile and a snack bag.

Five Star Feedback on Yelp
In spite of the difficult situation, residents were appreciative of efforts made by authorities and The Grand staff.

In fact, several residents publicly shared their feedback on Yelp:

Applause for The Grand
Essex applauds The Grand E-Team for maintaining resident safety and confidence in a difficult situation, and for demonstrating safe evacuation practices. Thank you!