Tabletop Tuesday: Edition 3 - There's Been a Crash in Your Parking Garage

May 24

Here's something I've learned from years of managing buildings and running emergency exercises.

The scenarios that catch teams most off guard aren't the dramatic ones. They're the ones that feel unlikely until they're not - the ones nobody scheduled a drill for because they seemed too rare, too awkward, or too specific to plan around.

The best emergency response doesn't happen during the emergency. It happens in the 45-minute exercise nobody thought was worth scheduling.

Every experienced leader I know has a version of this story. The incident that went sideways. The vendor gap nobody knew existed. The communication failure that was entirely preventable. The decision that took 20 minutes because nobody had talked it through in advance.

Tabletop drills don't eliminate those moments. But they compress them from 20 minutes of real time confusion into 3 minutes of practiced decision-making. That's the gap between a controlled incident and a chaotic one.

Welcome to Tabletop Tuesday - a recurring format where I drop a real building emergency scenario, walk through the decision framework, and surface the gaps that only show up when you actually try to answer the question.

This month: a vehicle collision on your property - the scenario that involves life safety, law enforcement, insurance, footage preservation, and tenant communication all at once, with clear decisions about when you call 911 and when you don't.

The Scenario

It's 5:18pm on a Thursday. Your security desk calls. Two vehicles collided in the parking garage on Level 2. One driver, a woman in her 50s - is out of her car and holding her neck. The other driver, a younger man - is standing next to his vehicle and appears uninjured. Both cars have significant front-end damage. One vehicle struck a support column; there is visible damage to the column face. Your camera system has visibility into that section of Level 2. Security is already taking notes about the situation. Neither driver has called anyone yet. It is private property in a garage that you manage.

Stop here. What are your first three actions - in order?

The Decision Tree

Life Safety First - Always

The woman holding her neck is the first and only priority until you know she's stable. Neck pain following a collision is a potential spinal injury. She should not walk anywhere. She should not get back in a vehicle. She should minimize movement as much as possible until EMS meet with her.

Your call to security: "Call 911 if no one else else has yet - Encourage her to limit movement. Keep her calm and still. If she reports any numbness, tingling, or worsening pain - tell dispatch immediately. Send someone from the team or a bystander to meet first responders at the garage entrance"

Use judgment. When in doubt, call 911. The liability of not calling far exceeds the inconvenience of calling. Every first responder I have ever rode with and talked to has said the same thing - make the call.

In this scenario, active neck pain following a collision - you call 911. Not because you're certain it's serious. Because you cannot determine that it isn't.

Property Damage Only

If both drivers were uninjured and the damage is purely between the two vehicles with no structural building damage - that is a non-emergency call to dispatch. You direct both parties to exchange information and contact the non emergency police line to file a report. That's their process, not yours.

Your role on private property is not to adjudicate the accident. It's to manage the space, preserve evidence, and document what happened on your property. If you are familiar with these tenants even better, you may the calm in a upsetting situation.

The Structural Column

A vehicle strike to a support column is a building structural concern. It doesn't matter if the visible damage looks minor. You document it with photos immediately, and you notify your engineer. A structural engineer may need to assess before that section of the garage is used normally again.

Notify leadership or ownership as needed once you have photos and an initial assessment. "Vehicle collision on Level 2, one driver with possible neck injury, EMS called, vehicle struck Column C-14, photos attached, engineer has been notified." That message, sent within the hour, is the right call.

The Camera Footage

Your camera system captured this event. That footage is valuable - to the drivers, to their insurance companies, to potential legal proceedings. Here's how experienced leaders handle it.

First: isolate and preserve the footage immediately. Have your security or systems person pull and save the relevant time window right now. Footage that overwrites is footage that's gone forever.

Second: know your ownership's policy on footage sharing before someone asks you for it. Most ownership groups have a position on this - footage may only be released to law enforcement with a proper request, or through legal channels, or per a specific protocol. If you don't know the policy, find out today - not when someone is standing at your desk asking.

Third: do not share footage informally. A driver asking to see the footage at your security desk is not an approved release channel. Be professional: "We've preserved the footage and our ownership group's policy on release will guide how we respond to any formal requests."

Document everything. Time security was notified. Time you arrived or were called. Time 911 was called. Time EMS arrived. What each party said to you. What the damage looked like. Photos with timestamps. Your documentation is your record if this becomes a legal matter.

What You Encourage the Parties to Do

Cooperate with each other. Exchange insurance and contact information. File a police report through the non-emergency line if EMS determines there's no injury requiring a formal response. Be honest with law enforcement and their insurance companies.

What you do not do: offer opinions on fault, share your footage without authorization, or make statements about the condition of the column before your engineer has assessed it.

The Role Assignment

Security: First on scene. Keeps parties calm and stationary. Does not allow the injured party to move. Calls 911 then you immediately. Starts to document information.

Property Manager: Assesses life safety. Contacts engineer about the column. Compiles all the information. Manages communications to ownership or leadership.

Engineer: Assesses structural damage to column. Documents findings. Advises on whether the area can remain in use.

Ownership or leadership: Notified once you have photos, EMS status, and engineer has been contacted.

What This Drill Reveals About Your Building

Does your security team know the difference between a 911 call and a non-emergency line call and the criteria for each?
Do you know your ownership group's camera footage policy right now - before someone asks you for it?
Does your team know to isolate footage immediately, before it overwrites?
Do you have a structural assessment protocol for vehicle strikes to the building?
Does your documentation process capture what you need if this becomes a legal matter six months from now?
If one of the vehicles is smoking or is on fire how does that change the response?

Run This Tabletop With Your Team

1. Setup: Print the Level 2 garage floor plan. Mark the crash location, the column, and the camera coverage area. Assign roles - PM, security, engineer, and one person playing each driver.

2. Run the scenario: Walk through each decision. Who calls 911? Who contacts the engineer? What does the footage preservation conversation look like?

3. Debrief: What worked? Where did the team hesitate? What policy gaps surfaced?

4. Take a walk: Walk through your parking garage - are there blind corners that could use a mirror? Does your camera system cover the high traffic areas? Are there corner parking spots that should be compact only?

If you found this newsletter interesting, consider checking out these past editions:

Matt Faupel