Educational Facilities Disaster and Crisis Management Guidebook.

PREPAREDNESS
Facility Preparedness
Facility disaster preparedness focuses on protecting
educational facilities so that they can be used for their
intended purposes.
Preparedness activities
vary depending on the
disaster and whether
there is warning. A
hurricane provides
warning only as its
approach path can be
estimated. A bomb going
off on the roof of a school
gives little or no warning.
“You can never plan for every contingency.
There will be things that come up that no
one thought about or anticipated. That's
why they are called emergencies. It's the
process of planning and putting your plan
into effect that will help you cope and
overcome.”
– Steve Ayers
Hillsborough County
School Board
The type of disaster will determine your preparedness
activities. For all disasters, the following actions should be
taken:
# If the school emergency plan contains a
Facility Hazard Analysis, review and
understand the analysis.
# Review insurance policies and keep paper
copies in a safe, watertight place, perhaps off
school grounds.
# Ensure communication systems have
redundant backup.
# Clearly post and practice evacuation
procedures.
# Gather a Go Kit (detailed in following pages).
# Create backups of important computer files.
# Gather other facility-relevant documents or
equipment.
# Review and update mutual aid agreements.
32