Evacuation Plan and Procedures

Responsible team member: Director of Public Safety and Service or designee

During an evacuation, the evacuation coordinator will oversee all operations and make all critical decisions regarding life, safety, and property. He or she will also determine if the incident is serious enough to invoke the college's emergency response plan.

Building safety liaisons will work in partnership with Facilities Management, Public Safety and Service, Human Resources, Marketing and Communications, LITS and other campus partners as needed to share information out to their departments as well as to keep the College informed about special considerations or particular care required in their area. Key responsibilities are as follows:

• Serve as the point of contact for their specific department.
  • Facilities Management or Public Safety will reach out to them with information regarding emergencies, contractor activity, accessibility, maintenance or other operational issues within their building or designated space.
    • This outreach (via email) will also go to key campus partners: HR, Disability Services, Student Life, Events Services, Registrar, Provost, Marketing and Communications and Public Safety Dispatch.
    • Determinations will be made regarding what other campus community members need to be notified, and how.
  • Building safety liaisons will be responsible for relaying the information from Facilities Management or Public Safety to their departments.
• Schedule annual evacuation drills with Public Safety and Service.
  • The Public Safety and Service Lieutenant or their designee will reach out annually to building safety liaison membership to initiate drill coordination for each academic or administrative building at the beginning of the fall semester.
  • The Public Safety and Service Lieutenant or their designee will reach out twice per year to residence hall building safety liaisons and Office of Residential Life staff to schedule evacuation drills for residential students at the beginning of each semester.
  • The Public Safety and Service Lieutenant or their designee will work directly with Events Services to schedule drills for camps, summer programs or other conference guests as needed and will keep in communication with the building safety liaisons of affected buildings. Events Services is responsible for notifying Public Safety and Service of the need for a drill and for coordinating dates prior to the start of each program for which an evacuation drill is required.
• Participate in occasional joint communications, training and meetings among building safety liaison membership during regular working hours.
• Remind all department members to keep their emergency contact information up-to-date in Workday to ensure they receive all alerts.
• Encourage department members to promptly report building issues or concerns to Facilities Management by submitting a maintenance request, emailing facilities@mtholyoke.edu or calling 413-538-2012.
• Inform new department members about department-specific protocols as well as how to find MHC’s emergency procedures, including designated assembly areas on the Public Safety and Service website.
  • Information about these resources will also be provided to new employees during the Human Resources onboarding orientation process.
• Refer individuals within their department/area to College policies and procedures, including, but not limited to:
  • Accessibility Barrier Reporting
  • Accident and Near Miss Reporting
  • Animals on Campus
  • Campus Emergencies
  • Emotional Support Animals
  • Fire and Life Safety
  • Service Animals
  • Smoke and Tobacco Free Campus
• Refer individuals with access needs to the appropriate MHC department when they share that they need assistance in the development of personal action plans for persons with access or functional needs.
  • Employees should email Employee Relations.
  • Students should email Disability Services.
• Remind everyone that the first call, in any emergency, should be to Public Safety and Service: 413-538-2304 or 911.
• Alert Public Safety and Service when there are department members, in addition to the primary and alternate building safety liaisons, who would need to be informed and/or respond in the event of an emergency and ensure that cell phone numbers and other contact information are kept current for these key individuals.
  • Most liaisons will not be contacted outside of their regular working hours.
  • Certain departments may have sensitive research operations, equipment or other considerations for which they would choose to be notified 24/7 in the event of an emergency or incident affecting their area. Departments must work directly with Public Safety and Service on any special procedures and provide the names and contact information for these individuals. Departments are responsible for providing updates as needed to keep information current.
  • Regardless of whether departments have designated individuals that would be notified after hours in an emergency, Public Safety and Facilities Management will still follow established emergency response protocols.
    • Public Safety is staffed 24/7 and Facilities Management has an on-call system for after hours response - Public Safety Dispatch will initiate as needed.

Employees that may need assistance during an evacuation should work directly with their supervisor and Human Resources to develop a personal action plan. Students that may need assistance during evacuation should work directly with Disability Services to develop a personal action plan. Building safety liaisons will direct individuals that choose to disclose that they may need evacuation assistance to the appropriate MHC departments

While not building safety liaisons, instructors/professors/technicians are expected to inform their students about assembly area locations, College emergency procedures and any classroom/laboratory/shop/studio-specific protocols at the beginning of each course and whenever any practices change.

Events Services and other event managers will inform individuals/groups that they invite to campus about College emergency procedures prior to the start of the event or program.

In the event of an emergency evacuation, if any person is known to be, or suspected of still being in the building, the evacuation coordinator (Director of Public Safety and Service) or other emergency responders must be immediately informed by anyone with such knowledge — this is an expectation of all community members and not reserved solely for building safety liaisons.

Responsible team member: Director of Public Safety and Service or designee

The security coordinator is responsible for greeting and directing municipal or contract responders to emergency locations and restricting access to unauthorized individuals.

Responsible team members: Public Safety and Service Dispatcher and Director of Communications or designee

The Public Safety and Service dispatcher will call in additional personnel as directed by the evacuation coordinator. The Dispatch Center maintains a call list of internal and external emergency personnel. A pre-recorded message may be placed on the Mount Holyoke College message line 413-538-2330.

The director of communications or designee will coordinate communication systems (telephone, e-mail, television, radio, Intranet) on campus for disseminating information and maintain information on the college website.

Responsible team member: Director of news and media relations

If the situation warrants media coverage, the director of news and media relations or designee will coordinate all press releases and establish a press area a safe distance from the site for all press that arrive on campus.

Responsible team member: Director of facilities and grounds

The utility coordinator is responsible for assessing the impact on utilities and shutting down utilities as necessary.

Public Safety and Service personnel will respond to all medical situations, dispatch EMTs as necessary, and call for any off-site emergency assistance.

Persons with mobility impairment may be allowed to "defend in place" and not be required to evacuate if they are:

1. Located above or below the level of building exit, and
2. Physically cannot exit without assistance.

Definition of mobility impaired

Persons who use a wheelchair, crutches, canes, walkers, etc. Persons who are able to walk should exit if possible, but need to decide if they can safely descend the stairs. Those with emphysema, asthma, heart disease, and arthritis, depending on the situation, may also follow the guidelines for defending in place.

Visually impaired

Persons who are visually impaired should, with the assistance of others, evacuate the building using the stairs, if they are familiar with their immediate surroundings and frequently traveled routes. If visually impaired persons are unfamiliar with the emergency evacuation route and assistance is not available, they should defend in place. To assist visually impaired persons:

• Announce the type of emergency.
• Offer your arm for guidance.
• Tell the person where you are going, obstacles you encounter.
• When you reach safety, ask if further help is needed.

Hearing impaired

To alert people with hearing limitations:

• Turn lights on/off to gain the person's attention, or
• Indicate directions with gestures, or
• Write a note with evacuation directions.
• Personal Emergency Plans (PEPs) for Persons with Disabilities

Although the process of developing a Personal Emergency Plan is optional for students and staff, the College encourages proactive planning on the part of the entire college community for emergency conditions. Individuals with disabilities may require additional assistance with alerting, evacuating, and sheltering in the event of an emergency.

The College offers the opportunity, through a confidential process, to develop a PEP that could include such strategies as storing extra equipment or medications, providing Campus Police with your class and personal schedule, specific evacuation procedures, sheltering procedures, volunteer rescue assistants, and designating means of communication in the event of an emergency.

Although not required, faculty, staff, and students are encouraged to identify their concerns about evacuation in case of an emergency, and to develop a PEP that is effective for them.

Even without a PEP in place, having a cell phone on you at all times and programming the Public Safety and Service phone number into your phone can allow you to alert Public Safety and Service if an emergency occurs and you have concerns about evacuating.

Students wishing to create a PEP for themselves, or those with questions about evacuations can contact Public Safety and Service.

Defend in Place

Unless the fire or other hazard is life threatening to a mobility-impaired person, or the person is on the ground floor (exit level of the building), then it may be advisable for that person to remain in her or his currently occupied room. If the individual decides to defend in place, he or she must immediately:

• Notify others evacuating that you are remaining in your room and ask them to contact campus police with that information immediately upon exiting the building.
• If a phone is available, call Public Safety and Service to inform them that you are defending in place, and your exact location.
• Close the door to prevent smoke entry, and, if necessary, put towels or any other available fabric at the crack at bottom of the door.
• If possible, move to a window with a brightly colored cloth to wave to the fire department. Do not break the window unless absolutely necessary. (Breaking the window could allow smoke to enter the room from the floor below or injure a person below).

Once outside the building, all occupants should proceed to the designated assembly area. Assembly areas are posted in each building. 

Visiting overnight programs must consult with Public Safety and Service if they wish to establish alternative assembly areas for buildings that their organization's participants and staff may be using, especially the housing areas. Assembly areas should be at least 25 feet away from the building and should leave access for emergency personnel to enter the building. 

If anyone is thought to be missing, do not re-enter the building! Notify emergency response personnel and/or the evacuation coordinator and inform them of the missing person's name and last known location. 

Re-entry into the area will be made only after clearance is given by the evacuation coordinator or their designee.

Because the college is a public place, keeping a roster for each building is generally not feasible.

Evacuated groups should account for each other to the best of their ability and immediately notify emergency responders if individuals are known or suspected of still being inside.

Do not reenter to attempt to locate the individual(s) yourself - notify emergency personnel immediately.

Remain at the assembly area until the Evacuation Coordinator or other emergency response official confirms conditions are safe and reentry is allowed.