School Emergency Information

Should an emergency or disaster situation ever arise in our area while school is in session, we want you to be aware that the San Francisco Unified School District and Chinese Immersion School @ De Avila have made preparations to respond effectively to such situations.  

In the event of a disaster during school hours, your student(s) will be cared for at this school.  CIS has developed a  disaster plan to respond to any crisis situation.

Your cooperation is vital in any emergency.  In case of emergency, please help us by doing the following:

1.     Do not telephone the school.  Telephone lines will be needed for emergency communication.  Any large overload of services may result in the entire phone system shutting down, disabling phone contact with emergency personnel.  It is important for parents not to telephone the school, though this is likely in contradiction to your parental instincts.

2.      Please listen to the radio for news. During an emergency, SFUSD will provide updates on the homepage of the website and send updates to the City’s designated emergency broadcast radio stations: KCBS (740 AM), KNBR (680 AM), KGO (810 AM), KQED (88.5 FM) and KSJO (92.3 FM).
Call 311 for San Francisco updates and 211 for Bay Area updates.
Depending on the status of internet and telephone connectivity and the urgency of the notification, SFUSD may also notify staff and parents through phone messages via the district’s School Messenger (using the number on file with SFUSD).

3.   Students will be released only to parents and persons identified on the School District Emergency Card.  In the event of a serious incident, students will be kept at their school until they are picked up by an identified, responsible adult who has been designated as such on a school district emergency card which is filled out by parents at the beginning of the year.  Please be sure you consider the following criteria when you authorize another person to pick up your child at school:

• They are 18 years of age
• They are usually home during the day
• They could walk to school, if necessary
• They are known to your child
• They are both aware and able to assume this responsibility

Our on-campus reunion location is in yard 2 at the Waller Street entrance. Parents are to sign out and wait for their children in the yard.  Our primary off-campus relocation site is New Tradition Elementary School and secondary off-campus is Grattan Elementary School.  

Primary Off-Site Evacuation Location

Secondary Off-Site Evacuation Location

EVACUATIONS
Fire drills simulate incidents such as fire or explosions and are practiced every month that includes 10 or more instructional days.  Each classroom has a fire evacuation route posted on the wall.  Students are instructed to quickly and quietly exit the building. 

SHELTER IN PLACE
Shelter in place procedures are implemented in the event of a police emergency or unsafe activity near the school (aka lockout) or an intruder (aka lockdown) in the school.  In a lockout, the perimeters of  the school building are locked and it’s business as usual inside the school.  In a lockdown, the hallways are cleared and all classrooms are locked.  A hazardous release event, like a chemical spill, could also be cause to initiate shelter in place procedures. 

EARTHQUAKE
Because San Francisco is geographically located in one of California’s most seismically active earthquake zones, earthquake drills, consisted of “drop, cover, hold”, are practiced every month.  

EMERGENCY SUPPLY
CIS Emergency Committee has prepared some supplies for emergencies. We are prepared for medical and food supplies.

Please discuss these matters with your family.  You may even want to begin your own family plan of action.  We like to call it planning for the worst, but expecting the best.  Thanks for your cooperation.