Hazardous Material Incident Off Campus

A major hazardous materials release in close proximity to the university could require sheltering or evacuation of all or part of the campus. A sudden release of hazardous materials may allow little time for an organized response. The appropriate reaction may be advising people to go indoors; close doors and windows; turn off heating, air conditioning and exhaust systems; and seal any openings as feasible. If circumstances permit, the campus population may be directed to designated shelters. Assistance will be provided for disabled individuals and children.

If time permits, evacuation may be the most appropriate protective action to take. Evacuation would most likely occur on notification from county or city officials responsible for managing the incident. The implementation of this protective action at the University of North Dakota will be closely coordinated with the county/city Operations Center (OC) to ensure the timely integration of the traffic flow from the university campus into the routing designated by the county/city.

The Incident Commander will instruct the community to leave campus through specific routes. One or more egress routes may be considered unsafe because of proximity to the incident. Traffic will be controlled and monitored within the campus and at the access/egress control points. An estimate will be made of the number of people/cars leaving the campus. This estimate will be reported to the county/city OC.

Priority use of available campus transportation resources will be allocated first to the disabled and children and then, to the extent available, to others in need. If additional transportation resources are needed, they will be requested through the county/city OC. The Incident Commander will confirm campus evacuation with the county/city during the evacuation for the purpose of judging the progress and at the end to ensure completion. Perimeter and security control of the University will be established. The area will be checked to ensure that everyone is evacuated.