EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS PLAN for South Kitsap School District

EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS PLAN for South Kitsap School District The intent of this plan is to provide an adaptable and generic guide for students, staf...
Author: Dwain Little
2 downloads 0 Views 73KB Size
EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS PLAN for

South Kitsap School District

The intent of this plan is to provide an adaptable and generic guide for students, staff and parents in the event of an emergency situation. It is critical to understand that no plan can cover all possible contingencies, and that common sense is the best guide for all unforeseen circumstances. In the event of an emergency situation, the schools must be among the safest places to be. Plan Organization: Part 1:

This section is the district-wide emergency preparedness plan which details the organization and operation of the District Emergency Operations Center (District EOC).

Part 2:

This section defines the minimum specifications and recommendations for a site-specific emergency preparedness plan for use by individual schools.

DISTRICT EMERGENCY OPERATIONS Part 1 CENTER (EOC) EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS PLAN

In the case of an emergency situation, the South Kitsap School District Board will delegate its authority and decision making powers to the Superintendent or his/her designee, who will manage District operations. This person shall be referred to as the SKSD Incident Commander. The SKSD Incident Commander shall make such decisions and execute such functions as is necessary to maintain the health and safety of all students and District personnel. The SKSD Incident Commander will establish lines of communication with school board members as soon as possible in the event of an emergency situation, and until such time as normal operations are resumed. A network of communication is a critical aspect of this disaster plan. In the event it is necessary, the District Emergency Operation Center (EOC) will be activated at the Administration building in the Superintendent’s office. If the Superintendent’s office is not available or not operable, the EOC will be relocated to the office of the Assistant Superintendent for Business. If neither of these locations are acceptable, the EOC shall be relocated to either the Transportation facility or an extra school bus. The SKSD Incident Commander will be established by utilizing the following administrative chain of command: Superintendent Cabinet Members The SKSD Incident Commander will immediately assess the situation in order to maximize District resources, dispatch personnel, and notify authorities as required. All District communication should be transmitted through the District EOC. In the event of a District wide emergency, such as an earthquake, all school or facility needs for emergency assistance from the sheriff, police, or fire department, must be routed through the District EOC. They in turn will notify the necessary emergency services and request the necessary assistance. All communications with the news media should be routed through the District EOC. The following personnel, or the staff currently occupying their positions, are part of the District EOC Command Center Team, and should report to the command center as soon as possible in the event of an emergency: Superintendent and his/her Executive Assistant Assistant Superintendent for Educational Services and his/her Executive Assistant Assistant Superintendent for Human Resources and his/her Executive Assistant Chief Financial and Operations Officer and his/her Executive Assistant Public Information Officer District Office Receptionist 2

As soon as possible, all building directors, principals, and administrators shall attempt to establish communication with the District EOC to report conditions. In the event the District EOC is unable to supervise or communicate with individual district facilities, the building directors, principals, and administrators will Direct the personnel within their own divisions and attempt to make contact with the county emergency preparedness team for the South Kitsap area which is located at Fire District #7 Headquarters. RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE DISTRICT EMERGENCY OPERATIONS CENTER (EOC) In the event of an emergency, the SKSD Incident Commander shall: • Declare an emergency, implement the District plan, and coordinate operations. Under his/her direction, the EOC shall: • Keep a log of communications, decisions, and actions. • Establish communications with individual building emergency operation centers (EOC). • Account for all students and staff. • Assess the situations, dispense District resources as needed, and make all necessary requests for outside resources. • Control all internal communications. • Approve and release press statements or other external communications. • Post current status information and update regularly. • Determine when emergency operations cease. • Prepare a report to the School Board recapping the emergency operations. INTER-DISTRICT COMMUNICATIONS The District EOC will use the regular phone system, if it is operable, or the command center radio to made contact with all facilities. All schools and support departments will be supplied with, and trained in, the operation and care of this equipment. To ensure the reliability of this equipment, periodic tests of the system will take place throughout the school year. In the event a District facility experiences an emergency situation, it is their responsibility to ensure contact is made with the District EOC within one hour of the emergency. If contact is not made, the EOC will attempt to send a team to the facility to access the situation. In the event of a major disaster, all outside contact with disaster relief personnel shall be coordinated through the District EOC. ALTERNATE COMMUNICATIONS SYSTEM The Alternate Communications System is under the Leadership of Homeland Security, and locally, the Department of Emergency Management. They have the ability to provide emergency communications in the event of an emergency or when normal communications are inoperable. The use of Amateur Radios, which are located at various places around the county, provide direct access to Cencom, District 7, ECC, South Kitsap School District, Harrison Hospital Bremerton, Harrison Hospital Silverdale, SK Harrison Urgent Care Facility, The Children’s Clinic and The Doctor’s Clinic. Once mobilized through the Department of Emergency Management, trained volunteers will be sent to each station to serve in whatever capacity is needed. These people will have a Washington State Emergency Worker Identification card which includes a complete background investigation and liability coverage through Washington State. The District’s ham radio is located in the Transportation Department. 3

DISTRICT EOC COMMAND CENTER A command center emergency kit will be stocked and stored in an 8’x12’ storage building located in a strategic location at the District Administration Building. Included in this kit will be several UHF radios, a portable VHF radio for monitoring the bus communications, District maps, colored status tacks, writing materials, hard hats, extra batteries, emergency lighting, a portable generator, a map of the South Kitsap area, a map of all school sites, a copy of each building major disaster plan, a contact phone list of District personnel and selected county agencies, and other supplies. Each school currently has a VHF radio tuned to the bus frequency located in the building and a backup unit located in their K-Prep building. In addition, each District building has been issued a UHF radio to be used as a “command center to command center” communications link. The command center radios are to be used only in the event of an emergency and not on a daily basis. The UHF radios are to be turned on throughout the day, every day. TRAINING/EDUCATION Emergency preparedness training will be provided to all staff by the District and the Kitsap County Department of Emergency Management. This training will cover all phases of the circle of nine concept adopted by the District and Kitsap County. The Manager of Facilities and Operations will be available to provide help and assistance to all District staff and facilities with regards to planning and implementing a site specific emergency plan. Information on emergency preparedness awareness and education will be shared with all District employees on a regular basis and will include a review of the District’s Emergency Preparedness procedures. District curriculum will include specific emergency preparedness education for all students. EQUIPMENT/SUPPLIES The District will provide to each facility at least one 8’x12’ storage building to be used to store the equipment and supplies deemed necessary in the event of an emergency. Part 2 of the District plan includes a list of supplies that will be provided to each District facility for their use in the event of an emergency. It shall be the responsibility of each building to conduct routine inventories of this equipment to ensure that availability and readiness of these items. As stated above, all District facilities will be provided with a radio communications system to be used in the event the regular phone system is not operable. Training in the form of a video, written instructions, and hands on use will be provided by the Manager of Facilities and Operations.

4

Part 2

EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS PLAN SITE-SPECIFIC MINIMUM SPECIFICATIONS SITE SPECIFIC PLANS As part of the districts emergency preparedness plan, all individual school District facilities will be responsible for developing and updating their own site-specific Emergency Preparedness Plan. It is recommended that district buildings utilize the Kitsap County Emergency Preparedness “Circle of Nine” concept when creating or updating their plans. Included in these plans will be a site map(s) indicating emergency exit routes, utility shut off locations, fire extinguisher locations, assembly areas, surplus water locations and any specific site hazards. Additional specific specifications which all facilities must implement in their plans are listed below. Building staff and parent groups are encouraged to further customize each plan to fit the specific needs and desires of the individual locations and school communities.



SITE INCIDENT MANAGEMENT TEAM (IMT) It is imperative that each facility establish a chain of command for their building. The chain of command listing shall be included with each facility’s site-specific Emergency Preparedness Plan when submitted for review. In addition, the Site Incident Commander shall be responsible for activating their emergency communication equipment, activating the appropriate response teams, assessing the situation, and reporting their status and needs to the District EOC.

 RADIO COMMUNICATION Each school currently has a bus radio tuned to the bus frequency located in each building office. In addition, each District building has been issued a UHF radio to be used as a “command center to command center” communications link. The command center radios are to be used only in the event of an emergency and not on a daily basis. The UHF radios are to be turned on throughout the day, every day.

 EQUIPMENT AND SUPPLIES All facilities will attempt to establish and maintain sufficient quantities of the supplies that will be kept in the site K-Prep building. As part of the district’s ongoing effort to 5

provide a safe and secure environment for staff and students, supplies will be located in the K-Prep storage buildings. These supplies shall consist of hard hats, drinking water, hand tools, buckets, first aid supplies, communication equipment, pry bars, cribbing, rope, blankets, emergency lights, etc. It shall be the responsibility of site administrators to maintain a working inventory of these supplies.

 RISK REDUCTION TECHNIQUES In an attempt to reduce the injury potential within our facilities, the District will continue identifying and securing all bookcases and other non-structural building components. In addition, all district employees should review their personal work stations with an emphasis on reducing all possible hazards. The checklist below will help you identify common hazards that can be reduced or eliminated at little or no cost to the District: • Check to see if free standing cabinets, bookcases, and wall shelves are secured to a structural support. • Make sure all heavy objects are removed from high shelves. • Make sure aquariums and other potentially hazardous displays are located away from seating areas. • Make sure TV monitors are securely fastened to a cart or wall mounted bracket. If on a wall bracket, make sure that it is securely fastened to the wall. It is also recommended that an additional cable be installed on all wall mounted equipment to prevent the object from falling on students or staff. • Make sure the classroom piano is secured and not located next to a stage, ramp, or other area which might allow it to roll and cause an injury. • Secure all wall mounted objects (clocks, maps, etc.) against falling. • Identify large windows along exit routes which may contain non-safety glass. • Check to see if light fixtures are adequately supported. • Make sure fire extinguishers are secured from falling. • Make sure all hazardous chemicals are stored properly, have the necessary labeling, and the proper warning signs posted. • Review all emergency exit routes to check for potential hazards. • Locate and review the location of all utilities (water, gas, electrical, etc.)

 CLASSROOM KITS The following is a list of supplies that all schools should attempt to keep in the individual classroom kits: • Each classroom kit should have one flashlight and spare batteries for each teacher. • There should be one battery powered AM radio with spare batteries per teacher. • There should be a sufficient amount of large plastic tarps and rope/cord for use as temporary shelters. It is recommended there be two 10’x12’ tarps per classroom. • To help provide a calming effect for students, activities appropriate for the age groups, should be included. These items can include; games, books, crayons, paper tablets, etc. 6

• •

A list of items provided by the student’s parents. These may include pictures of the students’ family, snack food (non perishable), emergency release cards, etc. Located in the classroom kit or in a separate binder, there should be an up-to-date class roster as well as other forms deemed necessary by the school, for an emergency situation.

 DRILLS/TRAINING EXERCISES In addition to the above, each facility will perform major disaster drills on a regular basis during the school year. Reports of these drills shall be included in the monthly safety committee reports sent to the Facilities Manager who oversees the Safety Program. Each year, a district-wide drill will be run to test the entire system, including the command center and emergency communications network. These tests will be made as realistic as possible. The following procedures are to be included as part of the active “Response Plan” for each district facility: During an Earthquake or Similar Disaster • Immediately seek shelter from falling and moving objects. Move away from windows. If in the classroom, kneel under a desk and hold on to desk legs. • If in the halls, stairways, or other open areas without sturdy furniture to hide under assume the “Drop and Cover” position. • Hazards in the gymnasium may be found in the stage area, by folded lunch tables, basketball hoops, light fixtures, etc. If in the gymnasium during a disaster, assume the “Drop, Cover, & Hold On’ position under or between lunch tables, if in use, or against a perimeter wall away from identified hazards. • If outdoors, move away from all elevated and moving objects, and be especially cautious of fallen power lines or other utilities.

 AFTER AN EARTHQUAKE OR SIMILAR DISASTER • •

• •



Commence Circle of Nine Emergency Teams When the shaking subsides, follow your established school evacuation procedures and direct all persons to their designated evacuation areas. Attend to all serious injuries immediately, and do not attempt to move persons with major injuries unless conditions absolutely mandate it. Deal with all life-threatening problems first. Establish a designated area for all injured persons and begin first aid treatment, if necessary. Attempt to establish communications with the District EOC via radio or telephone. Report general conditions and known injuries to the Incident Commander at the District EOC. If contact is not made within one hour, the District EOC will assume your communication system is not functioning and will attempt to send a mobile unit to the site. Hang your “Condition Flag” so that it is visible from the street. o Red: Emergency, please help immediately! o Yellow: We need help, but it is not life threatening. o Green: Situation is under control, no immediate emergency assistance needed. 7





• •



• •



Do not re-occupy the facility unless your Damage Assessment Team has conducted a pre-assessment before the earthquake, and is certain the structure is sound and all “aftershocks” have subsided. The decision to re-occupy should be made by the principal, site administrator, or his/her designee. At all times, while disaster conditions exist, the school principal, site administrator, and his/her designee will be in charge and be responsible for directing all on-site operations. This person shall be called the Site Incident Commander. It is the Site Incident commander’s responsibility to communicate all changes in conditions and emergency situations to the District EOC as soon as possible. All District staff will be expected to stay at their work locations and assist with emergency procedures until the Site Incident Commander approves their dismissal. Facilities and Operations have provided a map showing emergency water supply locations in each building. It will be the responsibility of each building to indicate on this map the locations of their K-Prep building and the evacuation routes to be used in case of a disaster. Any updates or changes need to be submitted to the Manager of Facilities and Operations. Using the “circle of nine” concept, principals will assign tasks to building personnel to be carried out in the event of an emergency. Training for these specific tasks will be provided by the Kitsap County Department of Emergency Management. Building principals will work with staff to ensure they are prepared to handle any emergency situation. Each plan should include information regarding student, staff, or parental, emotional and behavior extremes. This should include information which covers detection, response, and follow-up procedures to be used in handling these situations. After the emergency is over, each building shall submit a verbal and written report to the Superintendent for review.

8