Emergency Evacuation Procedures
In the event of an emergency, determine the nearest exit to your location and the best route to follow. If time permits during the evacuation, secure your workplace and take personal items. In most emergencies, complete evacuation of the campus is not necessary. If however, there are hazardous materials released, flooding or other major incident, it may be necessary to relocate all university students, faculty, and staff to a safer location.
Evacuating from a Building
- Walk, Do Not Run!
- Do not use elevators.
- Those that are unable to rapidly evacuate the building should move to a stairwell landing and wait for assistance from trained first responders. Elevators should not be used in the case of fire. Inform first responders and the Campus Police Department of persons who have not been evacuated.
- Gather outside at your designated area. Report any special circumstances to the Emergency Operations Team or Campus Police.
- Do not return to your building, wait for instructions from Campus Police.
Evacuation of Those Persons with Physical Disabilities
Individuals Who Use Wheelchairs or are Otherwise Mobility Impaired:
- If on ground floor – Leave the building at the nearest safe exit
- If on above or below ground floor – Predetermine the safest plan of action considering your particular physical circumstances and the areas you will be in, with advice from your physician.
General Procedures
General procedures are suggested by fire department and emergency personnel.
In all areas you frequent, become familiar with location of at least two exits, alarm provisions, safety equipment such as fire extinguishers, storm shelter areas, and evacuation staging areas.
Before an emergency, choose at least two peers or fellow employees who are willing and able to assist you, if assistance may be needed in carrying you with or without the wheelchair to safety.
Ask faculty, supervisor, or Building Contact (or Assistant Dean of Students/Director of the student Affairs) if help is needed in getting volunteers.
Discuss with assistants and practice, if possible, the safest method for moving you up or down a stairway. If you have difficulty being understood, develop a card containing all appropriate instructions and carry it with you.
Evacuation Procedures
- When the fire alarm sounds, (fire or evacuation) all personnel should ensure that nearby personnel are aware of the emergency, quickly shutdown operating equipment (e.g., compressed gas cylinders), close doors and exit the building using stairwells.
- All occupants should proceed to their Designated Meeting Site and await further instructions from their Safety Monitor.
- All personnel should know where primary and alternate exits are located, and be familiar with the various evacuation routes available. Floor plans with escape routes, alternate escape routes, exit locations and Designated Meeting Sites are located and are posted in the buildings.
- Building occupants must NOT use elevators as an escape route in the event of a fire.
One can extinguish small fires only if trained to use a fire extinguisher. However, an immediate readiness to evacuate is essential.
For Fire Safety and Procedures see the Fire Report in section 11.
Disabled Occupants
If a disabled occupant is unable to exit the building unassisted, the Safety Monitor must notify the emergency medical response personnel (EMT’s) of the person’s location. Transporting of disabled individuals up or down stairwells should be avoided until emergency response personnel have arrived. Unless imminent life-threatening conditions exist in the immediate area occupied by a non-ambulatory or disabled person, relocation of the individual should be limited to a safe area on the same floor, in close proximity to an evacuation stairwell.
Critical Operations Shutdown
Critical Operation Shutdown: Critical operations, including equipment that must be shut off and persons designated to complete these actions have been identified. Procedures for rapid shutdown should be predetermined for life safety and loss control purposes, as well as ensuring complete evacuations in a timely manner. The Critical Operations Shutdown procedures are to be followed by those employees who have been assigned to care for essential building operations.
Building Coordinators
Building Coordinators are assigned to each building. Building Coordinators are considered the direct person of contact for each building. Building Coordinators are responsible for alerting building occupants during an emergency or evacuation. They are also responsible for conducting a personnel role call once evacuation or shelter-in-place assembly has taken place. This procedure is done to assist the Emergency Management Team in accounting for all building occupants.
Each University building must have a Building Emergency Plan (BEP) that describes procedures for building occupants to follow in the event of an emergency. The Building Coordinator develops the BEP and submits it to the Senior Vice President for Administration/CFO (Incident Commander) for review and distribution to the Fire and Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Department.