1. Campus specific fire response needs are determined by the population, staffing and building and/or campus lay out.

On all campuses, however, direct care staff are concerned with managing the safety of students as the highest priority.

2. Area-specific needs and fire evacuation routes are determined on a campus specific and building specific basis.

3. Specific roles and responsibilities of personnel at a fire’s point of origin are determined on a campus specific and building specific basis.

As noted above, however, on all campuses direct care staff are concerned with managing the safety of students as the highest priority.

4. Specific roles and responsibilities of personnel away from a fire’s point of origin are determined on a campus specific and building specific basis.

As noted above, however, on all campuses direct care staff are concerned with managing the safety of students as the highest priority.

5. Specific roles and responsibilities of personnel in preparing for building evacuation are determined on a campus specific and building specific basis.

As noted above, however, on all campuses direct care staff are concerned with managing the safety of students as the highest priority.

When a fire alarm goes off at a program or work site the monitoring company, Berkshire Communicators, performs the following actions in the following order:
1) Dispatches the fire department to the program/work site.
2) Calls the program/work site for more information. (See NOTE 1 below)
3) Calls the HEC maintenance department cell phone, which is carried by the on-call maintenance manager.
4) If #3 is not successful, calls through the call list of designated Maintenance staff until one is reached.
NOTE 1:
The monitoring company will try to reach the program or work site to acquire more information to be sure that no other help is needed, such as an ambulance, police, etc. The staff should also dial 911 as soon as it is safe to do so when any fire alarm is activated, unless it is a drill.
With the exception of a fire drill, whenever a fire alarm is activated – even in the event that, for example, a student activates the alarm — the program should immediately contact 911 emergency services, and NOT Berkshire Communicators.

Monitoring of fire and life safety performance is conducted on an ongoing basis in a number of ways.

1. Staff knowledge and skills
The monitoring of staff knowledge and skills is conducted through regular observation of performance by supervisors, including performance during fire drills; through formal supervision meetings; through annual performance evaluations; and through training and refresher training conducted each year.

2. Level of staff participation
The monitoring of staff participation is conducted through means described above, and particularly during actual fire drills and fire safety training.

3. Monitoring and inspection activities
Hazard/safety surveillance inspections are conducted on each campus at least quarterly. Hazard surveillance inspection reports, fire inspection reports conducted by the local fire inspectors, and investigation findings are reviewed by campus Environment of Care Committees, as they occur or are completed.

4. Emergency and incident reporting
All incident reports, including reports related to fire safety issues and the required Mandatory School Fire Reporting Form are reviewed by supervisors, nursing staff, clinical staff, and program administrators some of whom are members of the campus Environment of Care Committee.

Incidents that are not documented require follow up by supervisors, and incident reports that are not completed correctly or according to procedure, are returned for follow up by the supervisor.

Data on fire safety incident and emergency reports is maintained and is reviewed on a regular basis, as they occur, by program and agency administration and by the campus Environment of Care Committee.

5. Inspection, preventive maintenance and testing of fire safety and life safety equipment.
As noted above, fire safety and life safety systems, equipment, and components are inspected, tested and maintained on schedules in compliance with the highest/most stringent requirements of equipment manufacturer recommendations or requirements of state, local and/or accreditation and licensing agencies.

These schedules vary from campus to campus and are dependent upon the systems and equipment at the specific campus. The campus-specific schedules are maintained, implemented and documented by the Maintenance Dept. at that campus.

An orientation to life safety and emergency response policies and procedures is provided for all new staff during New Staff Orientation, and life safety and emergency response training is provided on a quarterly basis thereafter.

This Plan shall be reviewed and evaluated each year for its effectiveness, scope, performance and objectives. A work group minimally consisting of the Facilities Coordinator, the Director of Facilities, the Director of Quality Assurance, and the Chairpersons from each campus EOC Committee and/or their designee will conduct the review and evaluation between March and May of each year. The results of the review and evaluation, and related recommendations, will be reported sequentially to the campus EOC Committees, the Senior Management Team for review and approval. Barring unforeseen and unavoidable delays, this revised Plan shall be implemented each July at the beginning of the new Program Year.

Virtually all purchasing is done on a campus by campus basis. The campus specific person responsible for purchasing reviews all proposed acquisitions (i.e., bedding, window draperies, and other curtains, furnishings, decorations, wastebaskets, and other equipment) for fire safety issues. If concerns are identified during the review, the purchase of the proposed item will be cancelled or postponed until safety can be clarified or confirmed. Consultation with the local fire department and/or manufacturer on any proposed acquisition will be done if necessary.

Any and all fire protection deficiencies, failures, and user errors are immediately reported to program supervisors or administrators, as well as to the campus Maintenance Dept. Fire protection deficiencies, failures, and user errors are addressed and corrected as soon as possible, with necessary steps (e.g., notifying the local fire dept.; additional staff to conduct fire watch) taken to provide protection during the period of correction.

Any extensive or systemic deficiency, failure, or user error is reported to the Director of Facilities and the on-call Senior Manager as soon as possible after diagnosis or detection.

See III. above.
Fire protection and life safety systems, equipment, and components are inspected, tested and maintained on schedules in compliance with the highest/most stringent requirements of either the equipment manufacturer recommendations or requirements of state, local and/or accreditation and licensing agencies.

These schedules vary by campus, depending on the specific systems and equipment at the campus. The campus-specific schedules are maintained, implemented and documented by the Maintenance Dept. at that campus.

 
All battery powered emergency lights required for egress are tested for at least 30 seconds at least every 30 days. At least annually, these lights are tested for at least 90 minutes. (EC.7.40)

All fire and smoke dampers are operated at least every four years, with fusible links removed if applicable, to verify that they fully close.1

1. Smoke/fire/heat detection and alarm systems are inspected, tested and cleaned by an outside contractor at least every 12 months. However, alarms are pulled and communications with Berkshire Communicators are checked during each fire drill, which are conducted for each shift and each campus building.
2. At the residential campuses, student dormitories, and some other buildings at campuses are protected by automatic sprinkler systems which are inspected and tested by an outside contractor at least quarterly. Housatonic Academy is not equipped with automatic sprinkler systems.
3. Fire safety and emergency response training is provided to all new employees as part of New Staff Orientation and on a quarterly basis thereafter.
4. Fire Drills – Floor plans are posted in every dormitory common area, and other activity areas. The plans indicate the evacuation route(s) to be followed to exit the building.

Each residential and overnight shift performs a fire drill quarterly in the dorm buildings. The academic shift conducts monthly fire drills in all areas used as classrooms. All drills are recorded on the HEC Fire Drill or Activity Report form (see section D.). The supervisor in charge of running the drill must vary the drill conditions to require students and staff to react to potentially dangerous situations, such as blocked hallways or heavy smoke.

Per recommendation of Lenox, Great Barrington, and Pittsfield Fire Departments, 911 will be called for any alarm activity, excluding drills.

All personnel on all shifts are trained to perform assigned tasks during drills, first during the orientation period, then quarterly thereafter. The training includes the use of firefighting equipment.

A Fire Drill Report is completed after every scheduled and unscheduled fire drill. (See below for Fire Drill Report Retention Policy.)
The supervisor prepares the report and comments on the effectiveness of the drill. Where deficiencies are noted, the supervisor must run a follow-up training session and document such training.

Special care is taken to ensure that students understand the nature of such drills. Drill practices, without the use of the school alarm system, are utilized when necessary for additional training.

Students whose mobility is temporarily or situationally impaired are carried if necessary, to the designated safe area. Students should not be carried or escorted against their will during a drill of any kind. However, during a genuine emergency, unwilling students will be moved or carried as carefully as possible in order to insure their safety.

The program keeps a written log of all evacuation drills in the Administrator’s office. Included in the log is date and time of drill, the affected building, elapsed time, numbers of staff and students involved and comments or recommendations on the drill.

5. Fire extinguishers are inspected at least monthly, and they are maintained and tagged by an outside contractor at least every twelve months. Fire extinguishers are recharged and/or replaced as necessary and as indicated.
6. All campuses are equipped with hard wired, battery backup emergency lights that are tested monthly by maintenance staff and quarterly by the local Fire Department. Residential campuses also have emergency lights that are hard wired into the generator power supply and that are used during power failures. These lights are tested monthly as part of School Dude preventive maintenance when the power generators are tested.

All of the following persons and groups are authorized by the Hillcrest administration to take necessary action to protect life and property and to insure that the Fire Safety Management Plan is properly and fully implemented.
1. At the Agency level
At the agency level, fire safety management is the responsibility of the agency Director of Facilities, the Facility Coordinator, and the Director of Quality Assurance, in addition to the Hillcrest Management Team.
2. At the Campus level
At the campus/program level, fire safety management is the responsibility of the program directors, managers and their delegates (e.g., direct care Supervisors), and campus Environment of Care Committees.