Weather Incident at school

Although I have not experienced a weather-related disaster that resulted in deaths at a school, I was present during a flash flood that caused several people—staff, students, and teachers—to suffer minor injuries. The event catalyzed the community into action. The existing emergency management plan was fairly detailed and yet it was not taken seriously enough by school administrators to have in place the requisite resources or protocols. More importantly, staff and teachers were not being trained properly. The main way to prevent and minimize casualties due to a weather-related event is through preparation and planning, with leadership, communication, and coordination the number one priorities.
Schools are often heralded as the community hubs for safety, serving as shelters during weather emergencies. Yet as Stalker, Cullen & Kloesel (2015) point out, schools are also filled with “high concentrations of people that cannot respond quickly,” a situation that is exacerbated when teachers and staff are unprepared (p. 75). The structural integrity of schools is usually reliable during weather emergencies, but school architectural, interior, and exterior design may need to be renovated in order to allow for improved flow of people and more evident pathways to safe areas (Williams, 2016). Administrators do not need to invest heavily in structural design changes to promote safety during extreme weather events. Simply by training staff and teachers in how to evacuate large groups of people, administrators can inculcate a culture of safety within the school.
In the situation I encountered with the flash flooding, several minutes of chaos ensued after the emergency announcement. Some teachers had easy access to the auditorium, where they knew to gather during emergencies. Others had difficulty navigating through long corridors replete with heavy doors that were difficult to prop open to promote the mass exodus of children and staff from classrooms into the auditorium. Of the injuries that were suffered, most were related to being pushed and shoved, with one person being trampled on and several being hit by doors or windows. Clutter and problems like metal from lockers also caused some minor lacerations. These types of injuries are thankfully minor but would have been preventable with clear guidance and strong leadership, with minor changes made to institutional design.
Another way the school could have prevented injuries would have been to utilize the resources available through government agencies like the National Weather Service (2007), which offers information pamphlets perfect for distribution in public schools. One of the most important issues for teachers and administrators will be how to best communicate with parents, many of whom will panic and instinctually want to drive to the school to get their children. Parents therefore need information, updated at least once at the beginning of the school year but preferably at several times to reinforce safety tips. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (n.d.) lists the specific guidelines for each type of weather hazard, allowing administrators and district managers to perform thorough risk assessments related to the geography and climate of the area. Our area is flood prone, particularly at certain times of the year. Severe thunderstorms and other issues including lightening can also pose a threat to our schools, requiring specific tips for how to address these issues and minimize damage or casualty (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, n.d.).
Schools are comprised of a large and diverse group of people that needs to mobilize in unison. Moreover, schools also need to keep in mind special populations including children or faculty with special needs such as those with limited mobility or the hearing impaired. At the beginning of each school year, as well as at incremental times throughout the year, administrators should conduct risk assessments and analyses to determine best practices for evacuating and protecting persons with special needs.
Given the lack of fatalities that have occurred in public schools due directly to flooding, it is important to commend teachers and administrators. Educators should also recognize the role they play in the community, serving as information and resource center as well as an evacuation center during crises. Furthermore, administrators play an instrumental role as resource coordinator, helping schools that are in more vulnerable, low-lying areas during flash floods. Our school was not in a low-lying area, which might be why our injuries were relatively minor. We also only had one parent try to drive through the flood, remarkably causing no injuries and reminding the community to be more assertive in its public service announcements related to how to respond. The school needs to play an important role in public service announcements, working with strategic partners in the county, city, and state governments. Pamphlets and printed media, as well as social media, can be used to remind all residents to avoid driving or walking during flash flood warnings and to seek higher ground—with the added adage of “turn around, don’t drown,” (National Weather Service, 2007).
The key to managing risk and mitigating damage during extreme weather events is planning. Coordinating resources in advance, school administrators and leaders can have in place a clear set of action steps that are taken and executed seamlessly. Similarly, having a communication protocol helps first responders to more effectively use their resources, and also helps teachers and administrators to share information as needed. Some injuries may be inevitable during extreme events, but schools do have the capacity to reduce human error during the process of preparation and responding to weather events.





References

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. (n.d.). Thunderstorms tornadoes lightning: Nature’s most violent storms. U.S. Department of Commerce. Retrieved at http://www.nws.noaa.gov/safety.php
National Weather Service. (2007). Weather safety. National Weather Service. Retrieved from
http://www.nws.noaa.gov/safety.php
Stalker, S.L, Cullen, A., & Kloesel, K. (2015). Using PBL to prepare educators and emergency managers to plan for severe weather. Interdisciplinary Journal of Problem-Based Learning,9 (2),75-83. doi:10.7771/1541-5015.1441
Williams, M. (2016). Weather Events[doc]. In EDA 537TE: Crisis Management in Schools. 2018. Retrieved from Grand Canyon University.