Evacuation for Persons with Disabilities

What to do During an Emergency

Mobility Challenges

  • Do not use elevators.
  • If you cannot exit the building without using the elevator follow the steps listed below:
  1. Go to (or ask for assistance in going to) the nearest area of evacuation assistance or safe zone.  Areas of evacuation assistance vary from building to building. Check with your department supervisor, building manager, classroom instructor or residence hall advisor to determine their locations in your building or work area. Depending on the building areas of evacuation assistance include:
  • An enclosed stairwell
  • A room with a door and an exterior window which can be opened
  • A room with a door and an exterior window
  1. Close the door to the stairwell or room.
  2. Notify emergency personnel of your location immediately by calling 911. Remain on the line with 911 until you are evacuated.

Blindness or Visual Impairment

  • Exit the building following the appropriate evacuation route, which may be different than the most familiar path of travel.  Don’t hesitate to ask for assistance in evacuating the building. Do not use elevators.

What You Can do in Advance

  1. Plan your emergency strategy when you first enter a building.
  • Where will you go and what will you do if you need to evacuate the building?
  • Who will be available to help you?
  • Ask about the location of designated areas of evacuation assistance for upper floors if elevators cannot be used for evacuation.  
  • Environmental Health and Safety staff can assist employees and students with planning. Call 541-346-3192.
  • Review more complete information about how to be prepared for emergencies on the University of Oregon Disability Services website.
  1. Self-identify that you have a disability to the University. Students can do so by notifying Disability Services at 541-346-1155, and employees can notify Affirmative Action at 541-346-3123.
  2. Set up “buddy arrangements” for assistance with colleagues, students, or instructors.
  3. Persons in fixed locations (such as employees) should assist departments in developing an exit plan.
  4. Sign up for UOAlert! on DuckWeb to receive emergency text notification regarding serious campus-wide emergencies.

What to do During a Non-Emergency Evacuation

  1. If an outage occurs during the day and you are unable to use the stairs, but choose to wait in the building for electricity to be restored, you may wish to find a window that is also near a working telephone.  During regular working hours, building managers should be notified so they can advise emergency personnel, if needed. Building managers may also be aware of timelines for elevator repair.
  2. If you would like to leave the premises or if the outage occurs at night, call DPS at 541-346-2919 for assistance.
  3. Some campus telephones may not operate during a power outage, but cell phones will probably be functional.

General Guidelines for Assisting Individuals with Disabilities

  1. Check on people with disabilities or special needs during an evacuation. Ask if they need assistance. Always ask someone with a disability how you can help before giving assistance.  Ask how to best provide assistance and whether there are any special considerations or items that need to accompany the person.
  2. Do not use elevators for emergency evacuation.
  3. In an emergency, call 911.
  4. Check on people with special needs during an evacuation.  A buddy system, where individuals arrange for volunteers or co-workers to alert and assist them in an emergency, is a good method.

Assisting in Evacuation by Disability Type

Mobility Impairment

If a person cannot exit the building, ask if assistance is needed. If they elect to await evacuation assistance, escort the person to an “area of rescue assistance” or “safer zone”.  If needed, assist the person in calling 911. After you leave the building immediately inform emergency personnel on site of the location of the person awaiting evacuation or call 911.

Some individuals with mobility impairments who are able to walk independently may be able to negotiate stairs in an emergency with minor assistance.

Blindness or Visual Impairment

A person assisting an individual who is visually impaired should:

  • Give verbal instructions about the safest route or direction using directional terms and estimated distances.
  • Ask if assistance is needed.  If so, offer your elbow and provide guidance through the evacuation route.  This may be especially helpful if there is debris or a crowd. (Never grasp the arm of a person you are assisting)    
  • While escorting a person out of the building, explain along the way where you are going and what you are doing.

Deafness, Hearing Loss, Language Difficulty

If a person appears to be unaware of the need for immediate evacuation use the following guidelines:

  • Get their attention by touch or eye contact.  State the problem clearly and simply including the need to evacuate.  Gestures and pointing are helpful, but be prepared to write a brief statement if the person does not seem to understand.
  • Offer visual instructions to designate the safest route or direction by pointing toward exits or evacuation maps.
  • Offer to escort them from the building.