| Families
are encouraged to be prepared in the event an emergency occurs during
school hours. The next time disaster strikes you may not have much
time to act. Families are able to cope with disaster by preparing in
advance and working together as a team with their school. Knowing what
to do is your best protection. Whether it's a natural disaster such
as an earthquake, fire, flood, or windstorm or a man-made disaster, a
crisis is an event over which we have very little control. Before a Crisis or Natural Disaster and Personal Preparedness: - Update
the school's emergency form listing people to notify in case of
emergency. Students will only be released to these people.
- Make certain the person who is responsible for your child has any necessary medication.
- Become knowledgeable in first aid procedures. Keep a first aid kit available.
- Have a flashlight and a battery-powered radio.
- Know the location of electricity, gas and water valves and how/when to turn them off.
- Have your family participate in disaster drills. Develop and practice a family disaster plan.
- Teach
your child how to recognize danger signals such as smoke
detectors, fire alarms and local community warning systems.
- Explain
how and when to call for help. Help your child memorize
important family information: name, address, phone number, and
where to meet in case of an emergency.
- Keep emergency preparedness kits up-to-date and stocked for at least 72 hours of food and water.
- Have a fire extinguisher. Check it annually.
- Keep
emergency phone lists updated. Choose an out-of-state friend or
relative who you and your family members can call after an
emergency to report your whereabouts and conditions.
In the Event of a Crisis or Natural Disaster: - Please do not call the school. Phone lines, if working, will be used for emergency communication.
- No
child will be dismissed from school unless a parent or approved
designee comes for him or her. All parents or approved designees
who come for their children must show picture identification
before signing out the student.
- Schools
are likely to be one of the safest places that children could be
located during most crises or natural disasters. Staff members
will remain with the children until all have been reunited with
their parents or approved designees.
- Bus
riders will remain with their drivers. If a child has been let
off at his or her regular bus stop prior to the disaster, you
should expect to find your child at home. For children who are
still on the bus, the driver will make his or her way back to the
school as conditions permit.
- Buses
will drive by AM stops, if safe to do so, and pick up any
children waiting there. They will be transported to school as
conditions permit.
- If it is too hazardous to move the bus, children will remain on the bus until help arrives.
If an Emergency Occurs While Your Child is: | Walking to school: | your child should | continue to school | | Walking home: | your child should | continue home | | In the neighborhood: | your child should | return home or go to a designated alternate home | | Waiting for a bus: | your child should | return home or go to a designated alternate home | | En route to school on bus: | the bus driver will | continue to school when it is safe to drive | | En route home on bus: | the bus driver will | continue home when it is safe to drive | After a Natural Disaster or Man-Made Emergency: | DO NOT call the school. | Turn your radio or television to KDEX 102.3 FM, KKLR 94.5 FM and KFVS 12 TV for information. The school phone lines must be kept open for emergency communications. | | DO NOT drive to the school | Parent
vehicles could impede the ability of emergency vehicles to get to
school. Your children need to understand the reasons for your not
calling or immediately going to the school. | | STAY at home or at work. | Once
you leave your house or place of work, no one will be able to
contact you if you become stranded and/or injured on the way. | | WHEN IT IS SAFE to travel to the school: | DO NOT remove any student from campus unless you are listed on the child's Student Emergency Card.
ALWAYS sign students out before removing them from the school. | School Emergency Preparedness – Frequently Asked Questions - Is the district storing extra food, water and supplies for an emergency?
Yes,
our school has stored extra food, water and supplies for 72 hours. We
will also rely on food, water and supplies from neighborhood homes,
and if necessary, local grocery stores. - How are teachers and staff prepared for an emergency?
In
the event that children must remain in school during an emergency,
teachers will conduct lessons and class time as usual. Dependent upon
their safety, children will be allowed to move about the buildings as
long as they are out of harm’s way. All non-teaching staff members
will provide support and resources as needed, including extra
supervision of students and assistance with phone calls and
communication activities with parents and emergency personnel. The
district safety coordinator and administration have discussed the
district’s emergency operations plan with all staff. - How will the school respond to an emergency?
When the Superintendent or designee determines that an emergency has occurred, there are five possible plans of action: 1. Go-Home Plan:
Returns students to their home and family as quickly as possible.
Each school maintains information for each child’s emergency contacts.
It is important to advise the school office if the name or number of a
contact person changes. The school will not, under any circumstances,
release a student to anyone who has not been authorized by the parent
or guardian. Students are never returned to an unoccupied or
unsupervised home. If there is no one at home to meet a student, the
child is returned to school and held until a parent or authorized
adult picks the child up. 2. Shelter In Place Plan: Keeps
students in their buildings when it is safer to stay inside than to
go out. Ordinarily, sheltering is considered a short-term solution,
but the school is prepared to keep students beyond normal dismissal if
necessary. Specific areas of each building are identified as the
safest for occupants. 3. Evacuation Plan: Requires
that all building occupants leave and go to an alternate location.
Evacuation may mean only going outside and away from the building
until an all-clear signal is given. Evacuation plans are posted in
each classroom, office, and near exterior doors. 4. Lockout Plan: Allows
no unauthorized personnel into the buildings. All exterior doors are
locked and administrators and/or designated staff monitor main
entrance. This procedure allows the school to continue with the normal
school day, but curtails outside activity. This procedure is most
commonly used when an incident is occurring outside the school
buildings, on or off school property. 5. Lockdown Plan: An
immediate and imminent threat to the school building population.
Staff and students are secured in the rooms they are currently in and
no one is allowed to leave until the situation has been curtailed. This
allows the school to secure everyone and remove them from immediate
danger. This plan is used most commonly when the building has an
intruder. - Are there emergency planning drills?
Yes,
drills are conducted at various times during the school year in order
to give students and staff practice in what to do during an
emergency. Our school believes that response is best when everybody
knows their role and has had an opportunity to practice. - Should I pick up my child during an emergency?
We
strongly encourage parents NOT to come to the school during an
emergency unless directed to do so. While every person’s natural
instinct in an emergency is to go to the school to safeguard his/her
child, please understand that doing so may significantly reduce the
school’s ability to respond to the situation. In addition, going to the
school may interfere with police or other emergency workers whose sole
purpose is to assure the safety and well being of students and staff.
Vehicles driven to the school, for example, may restrict access for
emergency vehicles and/or school buses that are loading children for
evacuation or to take them home. The school’s staff will be actively
working at all times to ensure the safety of all students. While it
may seem logical that every student taken home by a parent reduces the
workload of the staff, in a fast-moving crisis that requires careful
coordination and communication, extra vehicles and visitors to the
school may actually make the task of keeping track of all students
exceptionally difficult and potentially dangerous. |