Add as a preferred source on Google

Planning for Evacuation

  • By Mark Roberts
  • 05/01/18

When it comes to evacuating facilities in the event of an emergency we need to be prepared for any eventuality in order to get everyone out safely. That is why emergency evacuation plans are vital. Extra precautions and considerations need to be taken in order to accommodate the individual needs of students, staff, and visitors with physical or sensory disabilities, and those who may lack understanding of a situation or the ability to act quickly.

Identifying and preventing risk is a crucial part of emergency planning and should never allow leaving anyone behind because they are differently abled. Pre-planning for an emergency is imperative. Campuses must have the capacity to move all persons with disabilities to a safe location immediately in any emergency.

Points to consider when planning:

  • Clearly visible evacuation procedures
  • Consider mobility-impaired and persons with sight/hearing impairment
  • Staff training in use of assistive equipment and procedures
  • Regular reviews, especially if the building has in any way been modified
  • Visitors will often be unfamiliar with the layout of your premises
  • Visitors share their needs upon entry

Develop a plan to necessitate provisions and share the information with all people concerned. Campus administration has a moral, ethical, and legal responsibility to keep their whole community safe in the event of an emergency.

Evacuation chairs provide a universal evacuation solution for smooth stairway descent during an emergency. Evacuation sleds are designed to help evacuate non-ambulant people or people who may not be able to walk down stairs in an emergency.

More information is available at webcpm.com.

This article originally appeared in the College Planning & Management May 2018 issue of Spaces4Learning.

About the Author

Mark Roberts is vice president of Evac+Chair North America. He can be reached at [email protected].

Featured

  • restroom sinks

    CSU Dominguez Hills Standardizes Plumbing to Improve Restroom Maintenance and Efficiency

    At California State University, Dominguez Hills, facilities leaders have taken steps to standardize restroom fixtures as part of a broader effort to improve maintenance efficiency and control long-term costs.

  • Different Starting Points, Same End Goal

    Higher education campuses can enhance student experience by implementing mobile credentials to streamline building access, on-campus payments, and access to other amenities. This enables students to connect to their campuses through the technology they use most: their mobile devices.

  • Recent University of Pennsylvania Projects Receive LEED Certifications

    The University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, Penn., recently announced that three of its recent construction projects have earned LEED certifications, according to university news. The Vagelos Laboratory for Energy Science and Technology (VLEST) received a LEED Platinum certification, Amy Gutmann Hall a LEED Gold, and the OTT Center for Track and Field a LEED silver.

  • sapling sprouting from a cracked stone

    Lessons in Resilience: Disaster Recovery in Our Schools

    Facility managers play a pivotal role in how well a school weathers and recovers from a crisis. Whether it's a hurricane, a flood, a tornado, or a man-made event, preparation determines resilience.

Digital Edition