Emergency Procedures

If your child becomes acutely ill or is seriously hurt at school, our staff will make every effort to contact you at home or at work. Should these efforts fail, we will attempt to contact the “emergency contact” numbers you give us. Failing this, if we evaluate the situation as serious enough, we will call 911 and have your child transported to the Red Deer Regional Health Centre. In the interim, your child will be attended to at school. PLEASE NOTE THAT THE SCHOOL IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY AMBULANCE COSTS RESULTING FROM THIS PROCEDURE.

Due to the importance of having your updated information on file, please notify the school immediately if you have a change of address, home, or work phone numbers, emergency contact, or the contact’s phone number.

Emergency Response Plan

Schools are considered to be one of the safest places in our communities. However, in reality an emergency can strike anywhere at any time.

During any emergency, our first priority is the safety of our students and staff. In order to provide an effective response to any school crisis the Division has developed an Emergency Response Plan. This works in conjunction with other local emergency plans since a school emergency could require the involvement of numerous agencies. The plans created for individual schools, along with the Division Plan, are reviewed annually and after an emergency occurs.

To help better understand our emergency protocols, we have please review the "School Emergency Program" handout. This handout includes important information about student release in an emergency that may happen from an evacuation site. It also introduces our new "Community Hotline" number, which is where a recorded message will be available when any functional protocol is initiated.

We ask parents to familiarize themselves with our School Emergency Program.

Hour Zero

Red Deer Catholic Regional Schools has implemented the Hour Zero Crisis Management Program. This process provides a step-by-step framework on procedures to follow in a variety of crisis situations. Hour Zero Crisis Management consists of the following safety protocols:

Lock-down
Hold and Secure
Shelter-In-Place
On-Alert
Emergency Evacuation (including fire drills)
Drop-Cover-Hold

In order to prepare all members of our school community to act on a moment’s notice, we will be conducting these emergency practice drills. These drills, which will occur on a periodic basis throughout the year, will cover a variety of circumstances. In addition to practicing the drills, we will also be discussing with the students the appropriate actions to take during a number of emergencies. These drills and accompanying discussions are designed to prepare your child to act quickly and to minimize your child’s fear should an emergency occur.

School Protocols & Keeping Safe

Lock-Down	Lock-Downs are usually used in response to acts or threats of violence to students and/or staff directly impacting the school. During a Lock-Down all doors to and within the school are locked. No one is permitted in or out of any area once it has been locked. Students and staff must respond very quickly to a Lock-Down command to get to a safe location before doors are locked. No one, other than law enforcement, is permitted access to the building until the Lock-Down is over.
Hold and Secure	Hold and Secure is used in response to security threats or criminal activity outside the school. During a Hold and Secure, all entrance doors to the school are locked, with no one permitted in or out of the building. No one, other than law enforcement, is permitted access to the building until the Hold and Secure has been cleared.
Shelter-in-Place	Generally, Shelter-in-Place is used during an environmental emergency, such as severe storms or chemical spills. During a Shelter-in-Place, students and staff retreat to safe zones to seek shelter. This includes having students or staff who are outdoors come back into the school. Each school’s emergency response plan identifies the safest location for its occupants and how to seal a room from hazardous conditions. Students will not be released or dismissed until the situation has been resolved.
Evacuation	An Evacuation requires all students and staff to leave the school and go to an alternate location. This may mean only going outside and away from the building until it is safe to re-enter the school. In other cases, students and staff may need to go to an evacuation centre. Parents will be informed of the alternate location through the school’s Crisis Notification Network.
Dismissal	Under some circumstances it may be determined that it is best to dismiss students to their homes and families as expeditiously as possible. Should this be the case, every attempt will be made to alert the emergency contact for each student of the situation and to ensure young students are not left unsupervised.

Emergency Procedures

Emergency Response Plan

Hour Zero

School Protocols & Keeping Safe

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