Major evacuation drill planned at North Main Elementary next week

Close to 730 students and adults will be relocated off campus next Thursday MONROE — North Main Elementary School will conduct a school-wide evacuation drill on Thursday, Nov. 17, where the entire school body will be relocated off campus. School officials said they have been advised by the Monroe Police Department that it believes this type of drill is the first of its kind in New York State. The drill will test the readiness of school officials and first-responders should the need ever arise to have the school population evacuate the campus for any reason, including: a biochemical spill or leak, major power outage, weather-related event bomb threat or intruder. Participating will be police, fire and ambulance corps first-responders, according to officials. “The police will shut down North Main Street and provide our students with safe passage to a housing area at the Monroe Temple,” wrote Monroe-Woodbury School Superintendent Edward Mehrhof in a letter to the North Main parents earlier this week. “After walking to the temple, our students will wait for the school to be searched by the first responders.” Monroe police will be notifying residents and businesses in the immediate area, according to Frank Squillante, the district’s director of security and safety. “I think this is a good thing,” said Squillante. “We want to do something different than just marching out when the fire bell rings. It is different. Normally you just go out to your immediate premises. It’s a good learning experience for the first -responders. Everyone will get a good sense of working together and they normally don’t get that unless it’s a real emergency.” Debriefings School and police officials are refining the plan for next Thursday, said Principal Matthew Kravatz. Faculty will not be told in advance what part of the building will be affected or what the scenario is ahead of time. During a fire drill, the entire school can be evacuated through pre-determined exits in only 90 seconds, according to Assistant Principal Dolores Terlecky. But for this drill, and because different exits will need to be used by students and teachers, there will not be any specific time goals. In total, about 630 students and 100 faculty and support staff will be relocated during the drill, said Kravatz. Buses will return students to the campus once the drill is complete, said Squillante, but there is also a secondary purpose for using buses rather than having students walk back. “Maybe they’d have to bring them to someplace else (other than the school),” said Squillante. “We’d need to practice that.” Kravatz said the equally important part of the drill will be the debriefing session afterward, when everyone will come together to review what happened and assess lessons learned. “The exercise will enable our school personnel and first-responders to review protocol and make any necessary changes or enhancements,” wrote Mehrhof. “While we certainly hope we never have to use the information learned in this drill in a real emergency, it is imperative that our students and school personnel become familiar with the protocols.” Future drills at Pine Tree and Central Valley All school buildings have had plans redesigned to make them more first-responder friendly, Squillante said, but drills are still necessary. “In my opinion, North Main is among the vulnerable schools in the district, due to its proximity to the town and being close to the bus station and transient visitors,” said Squillante. “It’s the oldest building in district, with open walls, and that makes it hard to secure in the event of an intruder. It’s not meant to scare anybody, it’s the reality of what it is. But North Main does have a place in my heart and I like to do exercises there.” He also said Central Valley has a similar vulnerability due to its proximity to the Woodbury Common Premium Outlets and the transient population there. Squillante is planning a lock down drill at Pine Tree Elementary next year in conjunction with the Monroe police and various first-responder agencies. He expects to coordinate an intruder drill at Central Valley Elementary in conjunction with the Woodbury Police Department and Woodbury first responders next year as well. In case of bad weather, the drill will be rescheduled for Tuesday, Nov. 29. — Nancy Kriz “In my opinion, North Main is among the vulnerable schools in the district... It’s the oldest building in district, with open walls, and that makes it hard to secure in the event of an intruder. It’s not meant to scare anybody; it’s the reality of what it is. But North Main does have a place in my heart and I like to do exercises there.” Frank Squillante, Monroe-Woodbury’s director of security and safety