Storm Season in Memphis: A Security Guide for Property Managers

By Friday night, the first wave of what forecasters are calling a multi-day storm system will be moving through Memphis. Rain, wind, and a hard cold snap expected to follow by Sunday. Most property managers are already thinking about drainage, roof conditions, and whether maintenance is on call.

Here's what rarely makes it onto that checklist: how your security coverage holds up when the weather goes sideways. It should, because the storm itself usually isn't where the financial pain comes from. It's the 48 hours after.

The Security Risk Nobody Budgets For

In the hours and days following a significant weather event, a predictable set of vulnerabilities opens up on commercial properties. Power outages take alarm systems offline, sometimes longer than the battery backup can cover. Debris lands on perimeter fencing and creates access points that weren't there the day before. Wind-broken windows on the back side of a building go unnoticed until Monday morning when staff arrives.

Then there's the post-storm scramble. Contractors show up. Insurance adjusters appear without notice. Side doors get propped open. Staff call in because roads are impassable or they're dealing with their own property damage. That combination of compromised physical security and reduced personnel is exactly what generates claims you weren't expecting to file.

Not just weather claims. Theft and vandalism claims.

Opportunistic property crime after a Memphis storm doesn't happen at 2 a.m. the night it hits. It happens the next morning, early, when everyone assumes someone else is handling it.

What Your Guard Company Should Be Doing

Here's a reasonable question to ask directly: does your current security provider have a written storm protocol? Do your officers have post orders that address what to do when a severe weather alert is issued, when power goes out, or when the alarm system goes offline?

If nobody can answer that, you've found your gap.

A professional security operation handles weather events in three phases. Before the storm: a property walk to document current conditions, fence integrity, camera blind spots, unsecured exterior equipment. This creates a baseline so that post-storm damage is clearly identified and reportable. During severe weather: clear guidance on when officers maintain exterior patrol versus shelter in place. That's a decision that should be made in advance with input from the property manager, not improvised by an officer alone in the dark. After the storm: a priority sweep before the property opens. Check the perimeter, confirm the alarm system is back online, identify any new access points, and document what changed overnight.

That third phase matters more than most people realize. A sweep done before your staff arrives changes what Monday morning looks like entirely.

Memphis Properties That Carry the Most Exposure

Not every commercial property carries the same risk during a weather event. A few characteristics raise it significantly.

Older buildings along Lamar Avenue, Summer Avenue, and corridors in South Memphis tend to have aging windows, original fencing, and limited camera coverage on back perimeters. One section of fencing down after a windstorm is an open perimeter until someone notices and reports it.

Warehouse and distribution facilities near the I-40 and I-240 exchange have large footprints, multiple loading dock access points, and high-value inventory. The sheer surface area makes post-storm patrol critical. One compromised loading dock door can sit undetected for hours if nobody's walking the property.

Apartment complexes and multi-family properties in Midtown and Frayser see a different pattern: residents propping exterior doors during cleanup, foot traffic that becomes hard to track, and maintenance contractors moving through common areas without a clear check-in process.

Retail strip centers with shared parking lots face lighting failures and debris conditions that are difficult to manage without someone physically on-site. The parking lot nobody can see clearly at night is the one that tends to attract problems.

The Memphis metro runs through about four or five significant weather windows every year. The properties that get through them without incident are almost always the ones with a plan in place before the system arrives.

Storm-Ready Security Coverage: What It Looks Like in Practice

For clients we already work with, Shield of Steel security officers receive storm-specific post orders as part of their standard site documentation. Before any forecasted severe weather event, we conduct a property walk, update those orders based on current conditions, and confirm communication protocols with the property manager. After the storm, priority patrol sweeps go out before covered properties open for business.

For property managers who don't currently have a security contract, we offer temporary storm-window coverage. A guard on-site during the highest-risk period, typically the 24 hours following a significant weather event, with a post-storm property walk included. It's a straightforward way to close the gap without committing to a full service contract before you've had a chance to evaluate the relationship.

We also do complimentary security assessments. Our commercial patrol team has covered properties across Shelby County long enough to know what fails in a storm and what holds. The assessment takes about 30 minutes and gives you a clear picture of your exposures, whether you're specifically thinking about storm season or general security planning.

One Thing Worth Doing Before Friday

If you're a property manager reading this before this weekend's system arrives, here's one practical step: call your security company today and ask them what their storm protocol is. Write down the answer. If you don't like what you hear, or if nobody can give you a clear answer, you know what you're working with.

The storm won't cost you nearly as much as the window it opens afterward.

You can reach Shield of Steel at (202) 222-2225 or request a consultation online. If you need someone out to your property before Friday, call today and we'll make it happen.