Disaster and Emergency Preparedness: Guidance for ... - INEE Toolkit

Disaster and Emergency Preparedness: Guidance for SchoolsEach classroom should have a classroom “go-bag” or “go-bucket.” These ”evacuationsupplies” should be taken on field trips, and can also be used in case of lockdown or shelterin-place(where the bucket can serve as a makeshift toilet). Each room will also need anemergency clipboard or notebook that can be hanging on a hook at the exit, or placed insidethe “go-bag.” This should be updated at the beginning of each school year and in preparationfor school drills.Student “comfort-bags” should be requested from parents and kept in a duffle bagor backpack in homeroom classes, ready at exit. Parent-teacher association may want toassist in assembling these items, particularly for those who many not be able to affordthem. Parents can also be asked to donate one blanket per child to the school, which will bekept in the emergency supplies container (see below).School emergency supplies should be located in a container or bin, stored outside themain school buildings. The contents should include a supply of water (approximately 4 litersof water per person per day—half drinking, half sanitation). This may be used by the schoolor community, if the school is utilized as a shelter. It should include communication devices,and as needed, vests and hardhats for response team members, shelter supplies, WC privacyscreen, and light search and rescue supplies if needed.Response teams will need access to several copies of your disaster response teamnotebook containing school and assembly area maps, master list of students, faculty/staffroster, school disaster and emergency response matrix, incident command system responsibilitynotes, and basic and specific emergency procedures. Teams will also need access totable, chairs, desk supplies.4. Practicing, monitoring, and improvingHold simulation drills to practice, reflect upon and update your planSchool drills should be tailored to expected hazards. Every school should conduct at least 3fire drills per year, and at least one full simulation drill. Schools in earthquake or flood proneareas should also practice for these hazards. For every drill that you perform with a priorannouncement, be sure to perform one without a prior announcement. Try them with differentscenarios, at different times of the day. Try them when the school principal is thereand when he or she is not there. The purpose of a drill is to prepare for the unexpected, so ifyou make it too easy, you won’t learn how to adapt to the real situation. Drills should alwaysbe treated as ”the real thing.”Good drills are a learning process. They begin with advance preparation by staff, providingan opportunity to train students in classroom groups, remember procedures, andcheck on provisions. The simulation itself is an experiential learning opportunity. Following38