Emergency Quick Reference Guide
Fires
- Activate the nearest fire alarm pull station.
- Call 911 to report the fire and know your location.
- Notify and Assist people in the immediate area.
- Confine the fire by closing doors as you exit.
- Evacuate the building at the nearest exit.
- Do not re-enter the building until it is authorized to do so by emergency personnel or UHV personnel.
Building Evacuations
- When the fire alarm is activated, evacuation is mandatory.
- Do not use the elevators.
- Take personal belongings (ID, keys, purses, wallets) that you can quickly and easily access.
- Close the doors as you exit.
- Move to a safe area as designated by emergency responders, well away from the building.
Active Shooters
- If possible, exit the building immediately and call UHV PD (361-570-HELP) or 911.
- If you cannot exit, clear the hallway quickly and remain behind closed doors in a locked or barricaded room if possible. Stay away from the windows.
- Remain calm-Do not assume someone else has called the police, call UHV PD (361-570-HELP) or 911.
- Evacuate the room, only when authorities have arrived and instructed you to do so.
- Do not leave or unlock the door to see what is going on outside the room.
Do not attempt to confront or apprehend the shooter, unless it is a last resort.
Suspicious Behavior/ Persons of Concern
- Do not physically confront the person.
- Do not let anyone into the locked room/building.
- Do not block a person’s access to an exit.
- Call UHV PD (361-570-HELP) or 911.
Suspicious Packages
- Do not touch or disturb the object or package.
- Evacuate the immediate area
- Call UHV PD (361-570-HELP) or 911.
- Notify your building administrator, residence hall director, or RA.
Severe Weather
- See shelter indoors
- Check your phone or email for shelter-in-place directives.
- If a Tornado Warning or shelter-in-place is issued, seek shelter indoors in an interior room away from the windows, and on the lowest floor possible.
Bomb Threats
- Remain calm. Get as much information as possible from the threatening caller.
- Call UHV PD (361-570-HELP) or 911.
Flooding
- Flooding can occur during major rainstorms, water line breaks, or loss of power to sump pumps. In case of imminent or actual flooding:
- IF you can do so safely:
- Secure vital equipment, records, and hazardous material.
- Shut off non-essential electrical equipment.
- Wait for instructions from emergency responders or maintenance personnel.
- Move all personnel to safe locations and away from the building or area in danger.
- Do not return to the building until instructed to do so by the emergency responders or UHV maintenance personnel.
Gas Leaks, Fumes, Vapors
- If you detect the smell of gas, fumes, or leaks”
- DO NOT pull the fire alarm
- DO NOT touch light switches or electrical equipment
- CALL 361-570-HELP and advise the answering party of the situation
- Clear the area immediately if instructed to do so by the Police, Security, or Fire Marshal
- Provide your location and the location of the odor to the Police, Security, or Fire Marshal during the notification of the incident.
- Provide as many details as possible to the person answering the phone.
- Call 911 if it is necessary
Hazardous Material Spills
Hazardous material spill, incident, or release for which assistance is needed:
- If the incident is indoors, close all doors to isolate the area if it is safe to do so.
- From a safe area, contact UHV PD (361-570-HELP) or 911.
- Be prepared to provide information:
- Name of the material leaking
- Quantity of the material leaking
- Time of the incident
- Location of the incident
- If anyone is injured or has been exposed to the chemical
- If there is a fire or explosion involved
- Your name, location, and phone number
- Follow the instructions provided by the emergency responders.
- Evacuate or Shelter-in-Place if required.
Medical Emergencies
- Cardiac Arrest-Heart Attack
- Assess the scene for safety
- Check the victim
- Call or instruct someone to call 911
- Locate an Automated External Defibrillator (AED) if one is available
- Perform CPR or find someone who can
- 911 dispatchers may coach you in CPR if necessary
- Burns
- Remove the cause of the burn.
- Flush the area with water.
- Do not apply a dressing or creams or lotions.
- Call 911 immediately
- Bleeding
- Apply firm but gentle pressure to the wound with a clean cloth or tissue. (Check for a first aid kit if possible)
- Immobilize the body part.
- Keep the person lying down in a safe and protected area.
- Call 911 immediately
Shelter in Place
A shelter in place is the use of a structure and its indoor atmosphere to temporarily separate individuals from a hazardous outdoor atmosphere. This can be because of a hazardous material incident, or perhaps a weather-related emergency. It entails closing all household doors, windows, and vents and taking immediate shelter in a readily accessible location, such as a basement or central medium to small room, and, in the case of a hazardous material incident, trying to make it as airtight as possible by shutting off all ventilation/HVAC systems and extensively sealing the shelter's doors and windows from all outside air contaminants with damp towels, or if available, plastic sheeting and adhesive tape. Diagrams of what sheltering in place entail following a chemical, biological, radiological, or nuclear threat, and how long it is advised to be done for, are provided by the FEMA-affiliated affiliated website http://www.ready.gov/shelter.
The process used to seal the room is considered a temporary protective measure to create a barrier between you and potentially contaminated air outside. It is a type of sheltering in place that requires preplanning.
- Take shelter inside.
- Lock doors, and close windows, and air vents.
- Turn off fans, air conditioning, and forced air heating systems.
- Take your emergency supply kit unless you have reason to believe it has been contaminated.
- Go into an interior room with few windows, if possible.
- Seal all windows, doors, and air vents with 2-4 milliliter thick plastic sheeting and duct tape. Consider measuring and cutting the sheeting in advance to save time.
- Cut the plastic sheeting several inches wider than the openings and label each sheet.
- Duct tape plastic at corners first and then tape down all edges.
- Be prepared to improvise and use what you have on hand to seal gaps so that you create a barrier between yourself and any contamination.
- Stay tuned for additional emergency information from the UHV Emergency Alert Notification System. In addition, check local TV, radio, or other internet resources often for official news and instructions as they become available.
Follow instructions from emergency personnel. Your safety has to be kept in high priority during emergencies.