SHELTER-IN-PLACE PLANS What Does Shelter-In-Place Mean? In some emergencies, the best means of protection is to take shelter within your home. Shelter-In-Place may be necessary in a chemical emergency, where hazardous materials may have been released into the air; during a tornado, where initial actions should be to take cover “down, in, and under”; during a snow storm when staying inside Refer to: Broomfield Hazards and off the roads is advised; or section for tips on during a critical incident involving planning for specific disasters. police (such as a barricaded gunman). Before a disaster strikes you should create your Shelter-in-Place plans.
Shelter-In-Place for a Hazardous Material Spill Shelter-in-Place for a Hazardous Material Spill means selecting a small, interior room with no or few windows, and taking refuge there. It does not mean covering your entire home with plastic. To develop your Shelter-in-Place for a Hazardous Material Spill plan follow these steps:
Ensure that doors and windows close tightly. Learn how to turn off ventilation equipment including furnaces, swamp coolers, and air conditioning. Consider making modifications to your home by using weather stripping, caulking, installing storm windows and storm doors to create a more airtight environment. Consider precutting plastic sheeting to Tip: The intent of covering windows and seal windows, doors, and vents. Each doors with plastic is piece should be several inches larger to seal out the “bad than the space you want to cover so air.” If your home is equipped with tight that they lay flat against the wall. sealing windows and Label each piece with the location of doors you may not where it fits (these should be stored need to cover them with duct tape and a towel and kept by in plastic. your 72-Hour Preparedness Kit). Choose an interior room above ground with as few windows as possible to be your designated Shelter-in-Place room.
Tip: It is ideal to have a corded desk or wall phone (one that works without electricity) if possible. Cellular telephone equipment may be overwhelmed or damaged during an emergency and will not receive Resident Notification
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Assemble a 72-Hour Preparedness Kit. Include all three components: Home Kit + Go Kit + Car Kit = 72-Hour Preparedness Kit.
