Page 20 - School Planning & Management, April/May 2019

SAFETY&SECURITY PLANNING DISASTER RESPONSES { CONT. FROM PAGE 17 }
For example, what if the factory next door to a school accidentally releases
a noxious gas? There must be a factory procedure that lets neighbors know about the problem. Once informed, the emer- gency response team will make sure that teachers close the windows in classrooms throughout the school. At the same time, the custodial staff, teachers, and adminis- trators must close all air-intake vents and bring all gym classes and others who may be outdoors inside to shelter-in-place.
Shelter-in-place drills might be de- scribed as the opposite of fire drills, which move everyone out of the building.
“As with all kinds of safety drills, you need to develop step-by-step protocols and train for them,” says Michael Dorn, executive director of the Juliette-Ga.-based Safe Havens International, Inc. “You need to put steps
in place to protect people, to communicate, to coordinate bus routes taking students to family pick-up locations, and to handle other needs that may arise during an emergency.
“There are different techniques, including sheltering in place for outside hazardous ma- terial events and the evacuation and reloca- tion of people to an off-site relocation center where families can find their loved ones.”
At every turn, school officials must work with local experts, including those with the fire department, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the police department, public health and emergency medical service agencies. “Any of these agencies can help with planning,” says Dorn. “So can consultants. Get in touch with all of these folks and ask them to help develop your plans or to review and refine what you have created.”
And when an emergency arises, make your first calls to the managers of these agencies. Take advantage of their expertise whenever you can.
In addition, use all available outlets to communicate disaster plans—television, radio, newspapers, and social media. If need be, take some time to familiarize yourself with the significant emergency communica- tions capabilities of social media.
Don’t forget about public-address systems. Regular PA announcements can keep those without other communications capabilities.
Throughout the emergency, use all of these outlets continually to communicate with your audience.
“In addition, it is important to draw on local expertise,” says Dorn. “Local exper- tise can help negotiate differences in road systems and terrain and explain the lay of the land in such areas.”
Finally, Dorn recommends practicing plans with table-top exercises. For these exercises, schools can set up scenarios, perhaps simulating a plume and a com- munity evacuation, with schools across the district acting individually.
More training courses are available through FEMA under the Emergency Management Institute (EMI) and the U.S. Fire Administration (USFA). Learn more about EMI online courses by calling EMI’s Independent Study Office at 301/447-1200. You can also email Independent.Study@ fema.dhs.gov for information.
The Emergency Management Institute (EMI), located at the National Emergency Training Center in Emmitsburg, Md., offers a broad range of NIMS-related training.
Here is a list of NIMS-related courses offered online by EMI. For details, visit their site at www.training.fema.gov and
click on the course you are interested in:
• IS-100.b - (ICS 100) Introduction to Inci-
dent Command System
• IS-200.b (ICS 200) ICS for Single Resourc-
es and Initial Action Incidents
• IS-700.a National Incident Management
System (NIMS), An Introduction
• IS-702.a National Incident Management
System (NIMS) Public Information
Systems
• IS-703.a NIMS Resource Management
Course
• IS-706 NIMS Intrastate Mutual Aid - An
Introduction
• IS-800.b National Response Framework,
An Introduction
Hone the best and surest means for your districts and individual schools to commu- nicate emergency alerts to students and staff. What are the best mass-notification tech- niques for this school and that school? What are the surest ways to set alerts for 911 emer- gencies, lockdown situations, fire alarms, and door access control alarms. What are the most effective and quickest ways to evacuate schools or to shelter in place during dire, life- threatening emergencies.
Review your plans regularly. Experts note that emergency plans are fluid, and as things change, plans often require updat- ing. Don’t be caught with an out-of-date plan when an emergency strikes. SPM
20 SCHOOL PLANNING & MANAGEMENT / APRIL/MAY 2019
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