Evacuation Teams

Evergreen has at least one volunteer for each floor in a building who serves on an evacuation team. Team members have basic training in exit procedures and are equipped with a clipboard and easy-to-spot emergency vest.

Evacuation teams are divided into two units:

  • Sweepers are responsible for ensuring that everyone within their floor is safely evacuated and accounted for.
  • Monitors make sure people do not re-enter buildings until safe to do so. They also assist with evacuation and act as communications liaisons with on-scene responders (police, firefighters, etc). and are equipped with two-way radios.

Responsibilities

Prior to an emergency:

  • Be familiar with your building evacuation plan and the basic emergency procedures
  • Know the alert signals (fire alarm and voice alarm)
  • Know the evacuation routes for your building
  • Know where your unit’s first aid kit is located
  • Have an up-to-date list of work unit members on a clipboard that is easily accessible
  • If you have a cell phone, save the Police Services emergency number in your contacts and have the phone readily available
  • If you have a two-way radio, be familiar with how to use it and make sure it is charged at all times
  • Know who to contact with additional information about your work unit

During an Emergency

  • Determine if it is an evacuation situation
  • Take vest, clipboard, radio, cell phone and flashlight
  • Move quickly and safely to ensure everyone in your area is evacuating using designated routes
  • Sweep your work area to ensure everyone has exited the building
  • If possible, do a quick check-in with adjacent areas to ensure they have evacuated
  • Assist any people having difficulty exiting without compromising your own safety
  • Close doors when leaving

Once Outside

  • Collect headcounts using your list. If someone is missing or injured, call 911, Evergreen Police Services or a monitor
  • Keep track of work unit members
  • Provide information and status updates to evacuees (if available)
  • For those assigned as monitors, cover entrance area to keep people from re-entering the building.

After the Emergency

  • Make sure the fire alarm is off or there is an "all clear message" from the Voice Alert or Police Services before allowing people to re-enter.
  • If no message is forthcoming, contact onsite emergency responder or one of the monitors
  • Once back inside, make sure everyone is accounted for and ok
  • When things have settled, send the emergency response coordinator a short email with your feedback on the incident response