The person with a physical disability on campus may be a student, faculty member, staff employee, or a visitor. Everyone should be familiar with procedures to assist the disabled in an emergency.
- When evacuating during an emergency do not use elevators!!
- Sight impaired persons should develop a buddy system, or a volunteer should be assigned (by Faculty/Supervisor/RD) to assist the individual during the evacuation.
- Alert the hearing impaired to an emergency and initiate their evacuation.
- Rescue of mobility impaired or disabled persons will be the foremost priority of first responders.
Mobility impaired or disabled person should go to an emergency exit and wait while the main flow of people passes. They should remain at the same exit until emergency first responders can arrive and safely complete their evacuation.
- Assisting mobility impaired/disabled person in an emergency.
- Be prepared to abandon wheelchair or other devices used for mobility.
- Ask the special needs person the safest method which can be used to assist them. Seek out volunteers and make sure you have enough people to provide assistance.
- Once the person(s) with physical disabilities has been evacuated, proceed to assigned assembly area and make them as comfortable as possible.
Faculty and staff should assist the physically disabled in evacuating the building by whatever method is most safe and appropriate under the circumstances.