On November 24, 2016, at 14:30 hours, the INCD partner performed an earthquake evacuation drill by using the E-PreS system. The drill was performed at School No. 77 in the Pantelimon district of Bucharest.
The school building has a standardized design, of the type used in the 1970’s all over the country. Its location is right behind the blocks on Pantelimon Boulevard. The school has a large backyard, where students gather for various activities, and which is easy to access from each of the school exits. This backyard was chosen as a muster point for the drill. However, other open spaces, as a park and some nearby sports grounds, could be used for the same purpose. The school has a symmetric layout, which allows for simple evacuation paths. At the ground floor, there are three entrances: the main entrance, facing to the Pantelimon Boulevard, and two secondary entrances, facing to the sports grounds and the park.
The number of students was 268 (134 at the ground floor classes and 134 at the first story). Students were from the V-VIII grades, i.e. 11 to 14 years old.
In the days before the drill, written instructions and customized evacuation plans, with checkpoint locations, were distributed to the school teachers, to remind them the aspects presented during the training hours provided previously by the members of the E-PreS project team in INCD.
Representatives of the Bucharest Inspectorate for Emergency Management were invited to participate at the drill.
Before the drill, tag packages (student tags + teacher tag) were prepared for each of the 10 classes participating in the drill. These were handled to the 10 responsible teachers in the day of the drill.
At the hour of the drill, the equipment was ready and all school staff and students, including the school principal, the school responsible with emergency management, the non-teaching staff, the representative of the Inspectorate for Emergency Management and the E-PreS team from INCD were present. Students were already instructed by teachers on the content of the drill and were waiting in the classrooms under teachers’ supervision, all wearing their tags. (It should be mentioned that emergency evacuation and drills were previously practiced in this school according to Romanian regulations in the field).
The drill began with the earthquake signal. During the signal, all students practiced “drop, cover and hold”. When the earthquake signal ended, students waited in the classrooms the signal for the evacuation of each class, according to the previously established evacuation plan.
At the corresponding evacuation signal, they went out the classroom, one by one, with the teacher following them and checking that nobody was left behind. According to Romanian regulations, they were walking along the middle of the corridor, away from the walls, protecting their heads with books or backpacks against potentially falling objects. They followed the pre-established evacuation paths, walking out the school building and gathering at the muster point, in the school backyard.
At the muster point, the teachers counted students from their classes and checked that everyone reached there. Then the signal for re-entering the building was issued. This concluded the drill.
After returning in the classrooms, students returned the tags to the teachers. These verified the tags number and state and handled them back to the INCD team.
