The College is committed to getting accurate emergency alerts and information to members of the community as soon as possible. However, in the first minutes of an emergency, you may need to make an immediate decision to “shelter in place” or move to a safer location. You should understand and plan for both possibilities. Use common sense and available information, including what you are learning here, to determine if there is immediate danger.
Whether you are at home, work or elsewhere, there may be situations when it’s best to stay where you are and avoid any rapidly changing or unknown situation outside. There are other circumstances when staying put and creating a barrier between yourself and potential danger is a matter of survival. Use available information to assess the situation.
Shelter in Place or Lockdown?
Depending on the circumstances, when the College issues a campus alert calling for a lockdown or to shelter in place, you should:
- Move into or stay inside the nearest building.
- Go into an interior room or office with few windows, if possible.
- Secure or block doors.
- Silence all electronics; set phones to vibrate.
- If the door has a window, cover it.
- Stay away from windows and doors.
- If you can, take your emergency supply kit with you, unless you have reason to believe it has been contaminated.
- Remain in place until notified by proper College administration officials (D.A.R.T. member for your building or the College Emergency Reponse Team).
Evacuation
There may be situations when you need to evacuate quickly to ensure your safety. Please do so and alert others in your area if possible. If it is safe to do so, go to your building’s designated evacuation site. If the evacuation site does not appear to be safe, get to a safe place as soon as possible.
In either case, if there has been no emergency alert from the College or Campus Safety, please contact Campus Safety at (909) 607-2000 as soon as possible. They will send an alert to the community and provide information to the Pomona College Emergency Response Team.
In situations when you are ordered to leave an area, be sure to take necessary items such as keys, glasses and wallets. You may not be able to return to your dorm room, office or classroom for some time. It is best to be prepared.