Natural disasters can occur at any time with very little or no warning at all. When you are caring for children it is imperative that you have an emergency plan in place. Many kinds of emergencies and disasters can take place and childcare facilities should be have a plan in place to keep the children as safe as possible.
The following steps should be taken in the event of any emergency.
*Evacuation routes are posted at primary and secondary escape route in the home.
*Clipboard containing each child’s information and emergency contact phone numbers are kept by the exit and taken when the home needs to be evacuated.
*Monthly fire and evacuation drills are done with the children and smoke detectors are checked weekly.
*Emergency kit and first aid kit are kept in the home at all times.
*CPR and First Aid training is kept up to date.
*Emergency phone numbers are kept by the phone at all times.
In the event of a fire or gas leak in the home, the following steps would be taken.
*Children are gathered and taken to the nearest exit.
*Following our fire drill procedures we proceed to our meeting spot outside of the home.
* Call 911
* Family Childcare Supervisors are called who will assist in contacting each parent of the children who are in my care. They will also come to my home to assist in caring for the children while emergency services assess the situation.
*Each parent or emergency contact is called and asked to pick up their child ASAP if it is deemed unsafe to re-enter the home.
The primary concern is the safety of the children in my care, drills are important so they know where to go and wait if there is a fire and I am injured or unable to get out quickly.
The other disaster I chose was a tornado, I chose this because last spring we had a tornado touch down on base and it destroyed many homes and caused extensive damage. There were some injuries but thankfully no one was killed. The tornado happened on a Saturday evening, my daycare was not open at the time, but I do work some weekends and I very easily could have been in this situation. If the weather was calling for sever weather and the high possibility of tornado I would first make the decision of whether to close my daycare for the day, but we all know things can sneak up on you and weather can turn very quickly. I would quickly determine where the safest place in my house would be that I could fit the amount of children I was caring for. Most likely my bathroom would be the best bet. I would take my cell phone, the children’s emergency phone numbers and information, a first aid kit with a flashlight and a battery powered radio.
I would explain to the children what was happening and keep them as calm as I could. I would try to stay in contact with the parents as much as possible and I would keep a very close eye on the weather. Tornados can happen very quickly it’s important to know where to go in your home where you will be the safest. We would remain in that area until the all clear is given.
If you prepare yourself and your environment for disasters you will be better equipped to handle it and keep not only yourself but also the children in your care calm. When you let the children’s parents know what your plans and procedures are it will encourage them to put their own plans in place and their children will know what to do if any emergency happens while they are at home.
Jayme,
ReplyDeleteI have never live in an area where their are tornados. I have have children who have live in areas tornados. There would be times when I would talking with them on the phone and I could hear tornado warning. Tornado must be very frighting to children having a affective preparedness plan would be necessary to keep children safe and calm.