05.601 Building Emergency Coordinator Policy

Chancellor

Established August 8, 2017

 N/A

 N/A

Environmental Health & Safety (EH&S)/University Police Department (UPD)

Policy Details:

1. Scope

   UNCW seeks to provide employees, students and visitors with a safe physical environment. One component of this process is to ensure persons are identified in each space to serve as a point of contact between occupants and Environmental Health & Safety (EH&S), assist in verifying the availability of emergency information for building occupants and reporting of hazards, and facilitate emergency action plans.

2. Policy

   UNCW will designate one or more Building Emergency Coordinator(s) (BEC) for each of its occupied buildings to help coordinate actions to help protect lives and property in the event of emergency situations. The BECs will have responsibilities in education, planning and response. Environmental Health & Safety (EH&S) will provide training and resources to facilitate these activities, including: annual training, visual identification, periodic updates and recognition. EH&S may adopt additional procedures to facilitate the implementation of this Policy. Training will include:

   1. Emergency response during fire, medical, and severe weather emergencies

   2. Identification and reporting of health and safety issues

   3. Fire extinguisher operation

   4. Basic first aid

   5. Awareness of available campus emergency resources

3. Selection

   BECs may be professional building managers or representatives of departments located in each building. EH&S will determine the appropriate number of BECs necessary for each building based on size and risk. Directors, Deans or Associate Vice Chancellors shall designate these persons with assistance from EH&S. Persons selected should have work responsibilities that result in them being within the designated building during much of the work day; being familiar with critical department-specific processes, hazards or concerns; and having available time and sufficient authority (or delegated authority) to facilitate change. EH&S shall review this list annually and, in the event a BEC leaves UNCW or is unable to continue their duties, the organizational unit must notify EH&S at 910.962.3057.

4. Responsibilities

   Each BEC shall have the following responsibilities, which are not intended to increase risk to their personal safety or well-being:

   1. Education – BECs will ensure that building postings and emergency information are up to date and they will disseminate information from EH&S and UPD regarding how to recognize and correct hazards and what to do in an emergency. This information includes hallway and classroom postings, as well as email distribution lists, bulletin boards or other tools.

   2. Communication – BECs will serve as a liaison between EH&S and building occupants with regard to emergency plans, regulatory inspections, building safety, and environmental health issues.

   3. Planning – BECs will assist EH&S in providing occupants with the tools to adequately plan for emergency response including Continuity of Operations Plans (COOP) and involvement in campus exercises and drills. They will facilitate coordination with EH&S and UNCW Police Department (UPD) to address the unique aspects of each building. They will know the location of and verify the availability of emergency response equipment and information such as AEDs, evacuation plans and emergency posters. They will provide EH&S with identified occupant rally points, shelter-in-place locations and communications plans, including during times of utility interruption.

   4. Response – During an emergency, BECs should remember that their personal safety is the primary concern and that while they should take steps to try to protect others and reduce property loss, they should not take any action that increases their own risk of harm.

      During an evacuation, they should notify all persons they encounter to evacuate immediately. Once outside, they should assemble evacuees and account for persons as practical. They should communicate with emergency responders, providing information that may provide situational awareness or information regarding those unaccounted for.

      During shelter-in-place events, they should shelter in the closest zone to their work station, making sure persons along the way know where to take shelter. Once in shelters, they should check available information sources for updates regarding emergency status.

      Following emergencies, they should provide after-action information and recommendations to EH&S.

5. Review
   
   EH&S shall review this policy not less than every two years or more frequently if needed. Findings may be incorporated into this policy or into after-action reports.