October 29, 2007
Dear
Parents:
Should
an emergency or disaster situation ever arise in our area while school is in
session, we want you to be aware that the school has made preparations to
respond effectively to such situations.
Should
we have a major disaster during school hours, your children will be cared for
at this school. Our School District has a detailed emergency operations plan,
which has been formulated to respond to a major catastrophe.
Your cooperation is necessary in any emergency.
1. Do not
telephone the school. Telephone lines may be needed for emergency
communication.
2. In the
event of a serious emergency, students will be kept at their schools until they
are picked up by an identified, responsible adult who has been identified as
such on the school emergency card which is required to be filled out by parents
at the beginning of every school year. Please be sure you consider the
following criteria when you authorize another person to pick up your child at
school:
·
He/she
is 18 years of age or older.
·
He/she
is usually home during the day.
·
He/she
could walk to school, if necessary.
·
He/she
is known to your child.
·
He/she
is both aware and able to assume this responsibility.
3. Turn your
radio to AM-JOL-1340 or AM-WBBM-780 for emergency announcements. If students
are to be kept at school, radio stations will be notified. If electrical
service is not affected, information will be relayed via Connect-Ed and or the
School District web site. In addition, information regarding day-to-day school
operations will be available by calling the District Office.
4. Impress
upon your children the need for them to follow the directions of any school
personnel in times of an emergency
Students
will be released only to parents and persons identified on the School District
Emergency Card. During an extreme emergency, students will be released at
designated building doors. Parents should become familiar with the School
Emergency Disaster Plan and be patient and understanding with the student
release process. Please instruct your student to remain at school until you or
a designee arrives. Because local telephone service may be disrupted, also list
an out-of-State contact on the emergency card, as calls may still be made out
of the area while incoming calls are affected.
The
decision to keep students at school will be based upon whether or not streets
in the area are open. If this occurs, radio stations will be notified. In the
event that a natural disaster takes place during the time that students are being
transported, students will be kept on the bus and the driver will ask for
assistance through radio contact with the school and district personnel. Any
child who is home waiting for the bus will not be picked up (if roads are
impassable) and remains the responsibility of the parent or guardian.
In the event a natural disaster occurs in the
afternoon, the driver will make every attempt to continue delivering the
students to their homes. Should road conditions prevent the driver from
delivering students to their home or to school in the morning, the students
will be delivered to the nearest school site and that school will communicate
with the home school to inform them of the students’ whereabouts.
In
case of a hazardous release event (chemical spill) near the school area,
Shelter-in-Place procedures will be implemented to provide in place protection.
All students and staff will clear the fields, report to their rooms and all
efforts will be made to prevent outside air from entering classrooms during the
emergency. Building emergency plans will be implemented. Students arriving at
school during a Shelter-in-Place drill or event should report to the school
office or to a previously designated area at the school because classrooms will
be inaccessible.
When
the dangerous incident has subsided, an all-clear signal will be given.
Please
discuss these matters with your immediate family. Planning ahead will help
alleviate concern during emergencies.
Sincerely,
Dan
Goggins
Principal
Plainfield South High School