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Organizations and Emergency Preparedness for Individuals with Disabilities, Part III: Resources - Links

by Lance H. Hegland

Over the past two months, we have looked at the reasons for, and tips toward, emergency preparedness planning targeting individuals with disabilities. Notably, the President issued an Executive Order on July 22nd instructing Federal agencies to examine this topic. This month we will briefly outline a few key resources that may help you develop, evaluate, and implement your plan. At this time, we have received and will pass along important information regarding local experiences, guidebooks, sample plans, equipment, and supplies. In the future, if you happen upon any consultants and/or trainers, please feel free to contact us.

However, before we discuss resources, I would like to thank the generous contribution and support of the staff at the Hennepin County Government Center as well as 3M. I would specifically like to thank Ms. Roberta Haight, the Administrative Security Manager for Hennepin County Property Services; Mr. James Ramnaraine, the ADA Coordinator for Hennepin County Human Resources [612-348-7741]; Mr. Ed Nelson, the Chair for the 3M Disability Advisory Committee [651-731-4040]; and Mr. Steve Roberts, Manager of the Research and Development Division of 3M's Emergency Health Services [651 733-2980]. They have provided invaluable input and feedback regarding their emergency planning experiences. If you have any specific questions regarding their experiences, please feel free to contact them.

Despite my inability to include some of their feedback in last month's article, I would like to briefly mention it here. Many of the points revealed had already been included in our previous articles. But, I found the tip of "networking, networking, networking" popping up several times. For example, many cited the tremendous value received from creating resource and planning networks consisting of people with disabilities, co-workers/neighbors, supervisors/managers, executive management, as well as external peers, interested parties, and professional organizations (e.g. general disability-related organizations, building/facilities managers, building/facilities engineers, human resource professionals, occupational health/workplace safety specialists, emergency response/public safety personnel, disaster relief organizations, and so on). Another challenge both cited was identifying individuals who may need assistance. Both organizations seemed to notify everyone that assistance was available, then requested "self-disclosure" from individuals desiring that assistance.

Now onto discussing resources. We have prepared a special "web exclusive" for this topic on the Access Press website . This "web exclusive" will contain links to detailed resources; whereas, our print version will identify contact information for several general resources. Those resources are as follows:

• Our Series: Organizations and Emergency Preparedness for Individuals with Disabilities
  • Part I: Why?
  • Part II: How?
• Summary Report covering the Department of Labor's Office of Disability Employment Policy [Voice (202) 693-7880 / TTY (202) 693-7881] titled "Emergency Preparedness for People with Disabilities: An Interagency Seminar of Exchange for Federal Managers" held December 2-3, 2003
  • Web / Text Version
  • Portable Document Format (PDF) Version
• President George W. Bush's July 22nd, 2004 Executive Order: Individuals with Disabilities in Emergency Preparedness
• Technical Resources
  • " Disaster Preparedness For People With Disabilities " prepared by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)
  • Ready.gov 's motto is "Don't be afraid...be ready" for emergencies and disasters. They have information covering various scenarios. Ready.gov is a service of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security [800-BE-READY]
  • Community Disaster Education Materials Listed by Hazard compiled by the Disaster Services division of The American National Red Cross. Some local chapters of the Red Cross [(202) 303-4498], such as the one located in Minneapolis, offer emergency preparation training specifically for individuals with disabilities. Please call the Red Cross to locate the chapter nearest you. In Minneapolis, contact Mr. Bill Nolan at 612-252-1026. The St. Paul chapter may be offering training in the near future. To find out more, contact Ms. Gretchen Ambrosier, the St. Paul area Community Outreach Coordinator, at 651-291-4669.
  • " Emergency Procedures for Employees with Disabilities in Office Occupancies " prepared by the United States Fire Administration [(301) 447-1000], a division of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)
  • " Employers' Guide to Including Employees with Disabilities in Emergency Evacuation Plans " written by Linda Carter Batiste, J.D., and Beth Loy, Ph.D., including a checklist plus additional resources , published on the Job Accommodation Network (JAN) [800-526-7234 (V/TTY)] funded by the Office of Disability Employment Policy of the U.S. Department of Labor
  • U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) " Fact Sheet on Obtaining and Using Employee Medical Information as Part of Emergency Evacuation Procedures "
  • The Access Board's [Voice (800) 872-2253 / TTY (800) 993-2822] ADA Accessibility Guidelines for Buildings and Facilities (ADAAG) Chapter 4 - Accessible Elements and Spaces: Scope and Technical Requirements
    • 4.3.10 Egress
    • 4.3.11 Areas of Rescue Assistance
    • 4.10.14 Elevators Emergency Communications
    • 4.28 Alarms
  • HELPU Fire and Life Safety offers fire, basic life, and disaster educational materials for "at-risk populations" and first responders, including emergency evacuation measures and methods, sheltering plans, fire safety, and disaster mitigation strategies.
• Emergency Evacuation Equipment
  • Many wonderful lists are provided by the Job Accommodation Network's (JAN) Searchable Online Accommodation Resource (SOAR)
    • Alerting devices that can be used to notify a person who is deaf or hard of hearing to sounds in the environment, including emergency alarms through vibration or a light signal. A transmitter detects certain sounds and then sends a signal to a receiver that vibrates or blinks a light.
    • Paging products and services that can help alert individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing.
    • TTY communication devices that can help individuals who are deaf, hard of hearing or who have a speech impairment to make and receive telephone calls.
    • Evacuation hoods and respirator masks that can help protect individuals from inhaling dangerous substances, such as chemicals and infectious particles like those encountered during emergency situations.
    • Tactile signage as well as tactile graphics and maps that can help individuals with vision impairments navigate evacuation routes, and may even benefit other people in smoke-filled areas.
    • Evacuation devices that can help individuals quickly move people with mobility limitations down the stairs or across rough terrain.
  • Google Search: evacuation chair
  • Google Search: evacuation slide
  • Google Search: evacuation equipment
• Policy and Procedure Samples
  • United States Access Board " Emergency Evacuation Plan: Background Information " and " Emergency Evacuation Procedures " - Personally, I feel the Access Board is an excellent resource, as they are an independent Federal agency staffed by many people with disabilities devoted to accessibility for people with disabilities. They develop and maintain accessibility requirements for the built environment, transit vehicles, telecommunications equipment, and for electronic and information technology. They also provide technical assistance and training on these guidelines and standards.
  • San Diego State University's Emergency Preparedness Information Site - I really like this site too. They have a plan for nearly everything ! This group is prepared! I love one of their communication strategies: the plan is public on the web, easily accessible and understandable for students, employees, and visitors to browse, study, and bookmark for quick reference at their leisure. Oh, wow, check out their evacuation chair and well-labeled storage area !
  • Postal Service Headquarters "Emergency Action Plan and Fire Prevention Plan" outlining procedures for use by evacuees (e.g. employees, contractors, and other tenants) in case of an emergency at the Postal Service Headquarters located at 475 L'Enfant Plaza, Washington, D.C. as published by the National Association of Letter Carriers, AFL-CIO.
  • " Emergency Evacuation for Persons with Disabilities " posted by the Santa Barbara City College Disabled Student Programs & Services (DSPS) Office
  • "Emergency Evacuation Procedures for Students with Disabilities" posted by the University of California, Santa Barbara Disabled Students Program (DSP) Office
  • "Information about Emergency Evacuation for Persons with Physical Disabilities - University of Oklahoma Norman Campus Policy" posted within The Police Notebook published by the University of Oklahoma Police Department
  • "Fire Safety: Emergency Evacuation of Non-ambulatory Disabled Individuals" article posted by The New York State Education Department Elementary, Middle, Secondary and Continuing Education Division Office of Facilities Planning
  • Google Search: disab* emergency evacuation

As always, if you have any comments or questions, please feel free to contact me via telephone (952) 401-9808 or e-mail lhegland@mn.rr.com.

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Last updated on September 10, 2004

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