Above Ground Community Safe Room: Survive-A-Storm Testimonial

Last Updated: July 28, 2016 We have all kinds of customers.  Small families, large corporations, large families, small businesses, schools, hospitals, our great military, and even state and local communities who want to protect their people.  We are very humbled by the variety and amount of folks that we have had the opportunity to provide protection for.  One of our most memorable customers is a gentleman named David Roden who contacted us about an above ground community safe room.

David realized that in April of 2011, while tornadoes damaged many parts of the tri-state area (Georgia, Alabama, and Tennessee), his mobile home park, called Mountain View Estates, was mercifully spared. As a property manager and owner, Roden felt the need to protect his residents, and since many were in wheelchairs, going underground was not an option.   Roden knows the vulnerability that comes with living in a mobile home, especially one that is in the path of a destructive tornado.

Is an above ground community safe room the best solution?

Both Roden and his residents think so.  After clearing land and creating a space for a large shelter, Roden contacted Survive-a-Storm Shelters to see if we had the answer.  It turns out, we did.  For David Roden and his 125 residents, we manufactured and installed our 56 feet long shelter, with easy access for all of his tenants.  At 12 feet wide and and 8 feet tall, there is enough room for everyone, even those in wheelchairs.

As the first mobile home park owner to ever own his own above ground community safe room, David Roden impressed both the local Walker County EMA director as well as fire chief Randy Camp who stated, "It exceeded my expectations". Roden met both gentlemen early in the process to ensure the shelter would meet county codes. So far, two mobile home park owners have dropped in to see the safe room which includes fans, lights, electricity and a backup generator in case the power goes out.  Roden opted out of bench seating and instead placed rows of plastic lawn chairs along the interior.  A bathroom sits inside the back door.  The unit itself is welded and bolted to a concrete foundation, with a combined total weight of over 200,000 pounds.We are happy to have helped David Roden fulfill his vision of  making his mobile home park a place of safety for its residents.  A man who takes responsibility to protect others is always a hero in our book.  If you have an interest in either a residential storm shelter, above ground or underground, or if there is a need in your area for a community safe room, please don't hesitate to give us a call today.  We are your storm shelter experts and we service many Home Depot locations across the nation, as well as through factory direct.  Give us a call today at 888-360-1492!