Sheltering in Place - Both at Home and at Work

On March 25th, we discussed Evacuation Plans.  I trust everyone has begun planning for a safe and efficient evacuation.  There are times, however, where it is unsafe to leave your home or work location.  It could be caused by many different factors and would involve many different steps to be taken depending on how you, your co-workers, and your family would be affected.  No matter what the reason, we should have resources and plans to "Shelter in Place."

Sheltering in Place is essentially remaining in the location you are currently at when you discover an emergency. In most cases it is used because leaving your location would put you in greater danger than staying put.  Some of the situations causing a shelter in place scenario could be:

• Chemical Spill in the area, or at a separate area in the workplace
• Violent Criminal in the neighborhood running from the Police
• An Active Shooter
• A Tornado, Hurricane, Blizzard or other weather event
• Or, simply because you were unable to leave your house or work

There are a few additional supplies which are essential to sheltering in place:

• Duct Tape
• 2-4 mil. thick plastic sheeting
• Battery Powered Radio w/NOAA Capability

The plastic is used to seal windows, vents, and openings in your office, safe room, or entire building.  Pre-measure the plastic and cut it with enough overlap to tape down using the duct tape.  Take a permanent marker and label each piece of plastic so you know which piece goes where.  Ensure you have an extra roll of duct tape in case you need to make repairs. 

If authorities announce a shelter in place situation, quickly take the plastic and seal the openings with the duct tape.  Ensure you do not have any gaps or wrinkles which could allow outside air to penetrate your safe room.

Ensure you have the radio turned on and are able to monitor the situation.  They will advise when it is safe to leave your cocoon.  FEMA has indicated to allow for ten square feet of floor space for each person.  This will provide enough oxygen for up to five hours. 

Some businesses and locations have a "Positive Pressure" capability.  This feature takes outside air, filters it, then pushes it inside the building or space at a higher rate than the outside or bordering rooms.  If there was a gap or hole in the seals, the inside filtered air would push out instead of letting the outside air in.  I met a colleague who worked in a location that had double positive pressure.  The entire building had positive pressure then another separate positive pressure system for the safe rooms, thereby creating a dual layer of filtration and pressure.  While these systems can be expensive, many corporations and locations use them to ensure building wide safety.

For further information, please review FEMA's online guide, CDC's online guide, or American Red Cross' Guide.  Feel free to contact me for additional information.

Continue to plan, exercise, and prepare both at home and at work.  Focus on the particular hazards in your area, i.e. tornados in the Mid-West, hurricanes in the south, or wild fires in the west.  Prepare for the hazards and continue to instill resiliency.