Emergency Preparedness Plan

Introduction

This Emergency Plan is for the Claremont Unified School District and has been prepared in compliance with California Government Code 8607, California Standardized Emergency Management System (SEMS), and California Education Code, Section 35295, which requires all public schools, kindergarten through community college, to have written a disaster plan that will be reviewed at least annually by the local governing board.

This plan was developed in cooperation with state, county, and city officials. Cooperation with these officials is essential in time of an emergency.

The plan includes specific courses of action to be taken in case of disaster. Each employee of this school district is expected to be completely familiar with this plan so that he/she will be prepared to carry out their responsibility in any emergency.

Basically, the plan is devoted to the welfare and safety of the student during school hours; it also describes a procedure whereby the schools could be used, under disaster conditions, as a community resource for the care of people.

The major objectives of an emergency plan are to save lives and protect property in the event of a disaster. This plan has been developed with the following objectives in mind.
 

The Claremont Unified School District Disaster Plan includes the following objectives:
 

1.

To provide for effective action to minimize injuries and loss of life and to assure care for students and school district personnel in the event of disasters occurring when school is in session.
 

2.

To provide for the maximum utilization of school personnel and facilities in order to care for disaster victims.
 

3.

To protect school property.
 

4.

Restore facilities, programs, and activities to previous level of functioning.
 

5.

Document damage and costs incurred to return District to predisaster conditions.
 

It is possible for disaster to strike any community in California at any time. Generally speaking, disasters fall into two broad categories -- natural and manmade.

Natural Disasters

Disasters such as earthquakes, floods, severe windstorms, and forest fires are potential destroyers of both life and property in many parts of the state and can occur with little or no warning. Death or serious illness of staff members or students can also have profound effects on schools.

Man-made Disasters in Peacetime
 

Accidental Disasters New technologies have added potential hazards and thus have broadened the need for disaster planning. The possibility of chemical accidents, falling aircraft, industrial explosions, and accidents in transporting hazardous materials cannot be overlooked. The potential for major accidents also increases as we concentrate more persons in a given area and build homes in areas once considered to be too hazardous for such construction (i.e., flood, slide and earthquake areas).

Intentional Disasters In dealing with the safety of students during school hours, administrators are sometimes confronted with such problems as arson, bomb scares, and an increasing incidence of riotous civil disturbance, gang violence, looting, vandalism, and other threats to staff and student security.
 

Man-made Disasters in Wartime
 

Weapons Intercontinental ballistic missiles, submarines, and bombers make it possible for an enemy to deliver nuclear and conventional weapons anywhere in the United States. Biological and chemical warfare could also be employed.