Emergency Planning for Students with Disabilities and Special Needs

1
Emergency Planning for Students with Disabilities
and Special Needs

• Bob Spears, Director of Emergency Services
• Los Angeles Unified School District

2
Los Angeles Unified School District

• We serve the City of Los Angeles and 28 other
  municipalities
• K 12 Enrollment 694,288
• Number of Schools 1,190 including charters
• Number of Employees 83,967
• Schools specifically for special education 19
• Population at those schools 4,000 students

3
Planning Steps Before an Emergency

• Identification Process
• Preventing Injuries
• Mitigation of Hazards
• Preparing Students and Staff

4
Which Students May Additional Need Support in an
Emergency?

• Students with disabilities and special needs may
  require accommodations in two general areas
• 1.EVACUATION
• Students with mobility impairments may pose
  challenges in exiting a building and going to the
  safe assembly area. All schools establish a safe
  refuge area for evacuation but specific students
  may need assistance in getting there.

5
Which Students May Additional Need Support in an
Emergency?

• Students with disabilities and special needs may
  require accommodations in two general areas
• 2.SHELTER
• Once at the safe assembly area, some students may
  need more support than others. Students who
  depend on medical devices, medicines or constant
  assistance will still require this support once
  they are evacuated.

6
Identification

• The challenge for site administrators is to
  identify these students, capture their
  information, define their needs and have it in
  one central file.
• In the Los Angeles Unified School District
  (LAUSD), we will identify a field in the school
  computer for students who need a specific
  emergency plan. The school staff will then print
  out hard copies for the emergency management team.

7
Identification

• Many individuals or groups on campus can identify
  students who need assistance in an emergency
• School Safety Committee
• Nurse
• Teachers
• Parents
• Individual Education Program (IEP) Team
• NOTE This student list is not the same as your
  Special Education or Individuals with
  Disabilities list as all students with special
  needs may not receive special education
  services.

8
Who is included?

• Think of all kinds of challenges
• Students with temporary disabilities (i.e.,
  student with a broken ankle)
• Students with asthma (smoke may be a problem)
• Blind students may not be able to navigate
  hallways after an earthquake or hurricane
• Students with traumatic brain injury (TBI) or
  emotional trauma

9
Identification

• Once the students are identified, then the school
  computer can generate reports
• Class Schedules
• Parent Contact Information
• Health Issues
• These reports are put in the emergency plan so
  that these students will not be overlooked. They
  identify your most vulnerable population.

10
Prevention

• What prevention actions can schools take to
  address emergency planning considerations for
  students with disabilities and special needs?
• Use only classrooms with direct egress to safe
  area
• Hold additional evacuation practice with staff
• Have students practice with search and rescue
  teams
• Review contents of emergency supply cache with
  staff, students, and parents
• Supply portable generators for students dependent
  on medical devices
• Review system for alerting individuals of an
  emergencytest the system to ensure that it
  remains in working order

11
Mitigation

• What physical modifications could be made to
  mitigate the challenges to students and staff?
• Repair/modification to pathways with access to
  the Safe Assembly Area the field or shelter
  designated for the emergency.
• Work with district maintenance staff to make sure
  critical access issues are addressed
• Generators for schools with elevators

12
Mitigation

• Conduct regular site inspections to make sure
  that all fire and safety codes are being met
• Hallways are clear and open
• Doors are not blocked
• Safe Refuge Areas are not compromised by campus
  activities or construction

13
Preparedness

• Planning for each student with disabilities and
  special needs
• Develop an emergency plan that is customized for
  each student
• Plans should be developed in collaboration with
  school staff, parents, and students
• Plans should take into consideration any
  transportation, communication, or medical needs a
  student may have
• Preferred evacuation strategies should be
  discussed and articulated in the students
  emergency plan

14
Preparedness

• Site Administration should modify their emergency
  management plans to accommodate students with
  special needs.
• Examples of accommodations may include
• Identification of Areas of Refuge on upper floors
  where students can safely wait for rescue
• Identification of specific items that should be
  added to the schools emergency supply cache
• Identification of human resources that may need
  to be reassigned to meet specific needs

15
Preparedness

• Provide training for school staff and first
  responders
• Coordinate and communicate emergency plans with
  local first responders
• Conduct evacuation and shelter-in-place drills
• Invite local first responders to drills.
• Invite local Health Care Medical Services
  personnel to come to drills.
• Invite parents to observe drills and to practice
  playing their part.
• Use post-drill evaluations, hot washes and
  after-action reports to refine your Safe School
  Plan.
• Purchase needed equipment, such as evacuation
  chairs
• Identify roles and responsibilities for school
  staff to follow in an emergency

16
Preparedness Supplies and Go-Kits

• Classroom Go-kits contain materials for health
  and safety such as flashlights and bandages as
  well as items to engage children during extended
  lockdown.
• Go-kits may need be customized to include any
  special medications, supplies and equipment that
  students may need.

17
Preparedness

• Identify Roles for Members of the Schools
  Incident Command System
• Operations Section Leader to make sure that the
  Search and Rescue Teams account for everyone and
  First Aid is ready for all possibilities.
• Logistics Section Leader What specific supplies
  are needed for this population? How many special
  busses are needed to evacuate all of your
  students?
• Planning Section Leader -What are the immediate
  and long term needs of this population? Who is
  most at risk? Who will need support first?

18
Contact Information

• Bob Spears
• Emergency Services
• Los Angeles Unified School District
• 333 South Beaudry Ave., 20th floor
• Los Angeles, California 90017
• Telephone [phone]
• Fax [phone] fax
• Email bob.spears_at_lausd.net