When Disaster Strikes: Evaluator Field Guide 2025 Edition

In the wake of a disaster, perhaps one of the most important public safety roles that the building department is tasked with is conducting post-disaster building safety evaluations.

Rapid and consistent safety evaluations enable residents to return to their buildings as quickly and safely as possible, which results in a faster and stronger recovery. A post-disaster building safety evaluator is responsible for ensuring buildings are properly evaluated and placarded. When building safety evaluations are not conducted, a community’s residents will reoccupy potentially unsafe buildings.

ICC’s When Disaster Strikes – Evaluator Field Guide has been updated to accompany ICC’s When Disaster Strikes – Evaluator training. This field guide provides both current and relevant information for use coordinating building safety evaluations in the office or conducting them in the field. This guide focuses on the building safety evaluator’s objectives, which include:

• Conducting post-disaster building safety evaluations in compliance with the methods, forms and criteria outlined in FEMA’s P-2055 and the Applied Technology Council’s ATC-20 and ATC-45.
• Determining whether buildings are approved for continued habitation, approved for restricted use or are unsafe.
• Identifying when further engineering evaluation is necessary.
• Posting placards at the site and documenting the evaluation on the proper forms.
• Maintaining awareness of operational environments and hazards.
• Executing site mobilization procedures provided by the authority having jurisdiction
• Communicating with affected persons at the disaster site.