At the start of each academic term, instructional staff are required to instruct students and other personnel who are occupying the instructor’s area of responsibility on the proper procedures to follow in case the building must be evacuated. The following information must be included in the instructions:
- The signal to evacuate the building in case of emergency is the building fire alarm.
- Location of exits nearest to the classroom/lab. It is the instructor’s responsibility to point out exit paths to students. Exit routes have been posted in all classrooms, class labs, and research labs.
- Certain safety precautions that may be necessary before actually departing, such as: making experiments/reactions safe, shutting off gas, etc., if it is safe to do so.
- Building elevators are not to be used for evacuation.
- Evacuees are not to congregate in or around the building exits or doorways, evacuees must be at least 100 feet away from the building. A designated assembly area shall be determined by the instructor.
- It is the responsibility of instructors to notify students in each class of the need to identify themselves (in private, if desired) if they will need assistance during a building evacuation due to disability, and to establish an evacuation plan for those identified. Such evacuation plans may include the buddy system and the use of safe refuge areas—places relatively resistant to smoke and heat within a building (for example a sprinkler protected room or hallway, or a stairway landing) where an occupant could wait until help arrives to assist in an evacuation.
- Persons physically unable to evacuate are to be assisted to a designated safe refuge area (usually the landing of an enclosed stairway or a sprinkler protected corridor) if evacuation is necessary from other than a ground level floor. The assistant shall then evacuate and direct fire fighters to the location of the safe refuge area in use.
- Personnel may re-enter the building only when the Public Safety Officer at the scene of the emergency situation gives the "All Clear."
Revised:
1/22/2018 - Annual Review: To reflect current practice, change section from the old language to the current language. Changed the title from "Fire Drill" to "Fire Evacuation."
12/08/2016 - Annual Review: No changes made to content.
02/25/2015 - Annual Review: To reflect current practice, the email address for questions
is now policy@mtu.edu. No changes made to content.
02/26/2014 - Annual Review: Updated Michigan Tech and Handbook banners, no changes
made to content.
07/20/2011 - Annual Review: Was previously 9.4.4. The last sentence in item 12, "A
designated person will direct fire fighters to the location of anyone waiting for
assistance in a safe refuge area" now reads "The assistant shall then evacuate and
direct fire fighters to the location of the safe refuge area in use." To reflect current
University titles and practice, MTU is now Michigan Tech and the email address for
questions is now hbwebmaster.