Emergency Procedures

This plan is meant to be easy to read and applicable to most natural and human-caused emergency events. It can be used for district office and school facilities. This document should be reviewed annually by staff members.

Each school and building facility has an Incident Command System established wherein staff members are assigned tasks when responding to emergencies. Classrooms and offices should have an Emergency Procedures Flip Chart posted next to each door. It provided instruction on what to do for events that could possibly happen. Evacuation routes, as well as staff and stuent rosters for the particular rooms, should be posted in each classroom and in office areas next to the Emergency Procedures Flip Chart. School campus maps indicating assembly areas, command location and student release/parent pick-up areas should be provided to staff members and parents. In the event of evacuation each teacher should take the flip charts and student/staff rosters.

The most important part of the emergency plan is to practice the plan, remain as calm as possible if an event occurs, and use common sense.

PREVENTION AND MITIGATION:

In an effort to prevent something from happening, or lessen damage and injury from an event, the school district has loss prevention and control initiatives in place. These include, but are not limited to:

• Ensuring recognition of at-risk students who may require social, emotional and mental health assistance, and providing them help.
• Providing violence and bullying prevention efforts in schools, using security and counseling staff members as well as involving families.
• Designing building construction to withstand earthquakes and other natural forces, keeping damage to a minimum so that building materials and equipment will not harm occupants or hinder evacuation.
• Practicing emergency drills on a regular basis for various types of events in order that students and staff members will know how to respond to natural and human caused disasters.
• Training with emergency response agencies to respond to disasters.
• Stocking of emergency supplies in schools to be used in protecting students and staff members when responding to an event.
• Testing radio systems periodically to ensure that communication with district administrators and emergency agencies is available.
• Providing parents with information on what to expect should a disaster involve their child's school. Information includes where (radio, tv, Web site) to obtain the school's status and student release plans.

RESPONSE:

In the event of a natural or human-caused disaster, the school district has response plans in collaboration with emergency response agencies. These plans include, but are not limited to:

• Having exit and evacuation plans in response to fire, bomb threats, earthquake or release of toxic material or gas within a building.
• Securing lockdown of buildings in the event of civil disturbance, an intruder or other dangerous person on campus.
• Shutting down ventilation systems and housing students and staff members in a closed building in the event of a chemical or biological release in the outside atmosphere.
• Initiating response by police and security officers to threats of physical harm or violence.
• Providing counseling for students and staff members when bad things happen including injury or death.
• Identifying community resources that may be available in the event of a disaster.