Every building on main campus* should have an Emergency Response Team (ERT) comprised of at least two Emergency Response Coordinators (ERCs). ERT members, designated before an incident, prepare for and respond to any emergency incident, such as a natural disaster or an interruption of business operations. Depending on the layout, size, and configuration of the building, including multi-department buildings, an ERC may have additional team members called area captains.
* For U Health hospitals, clinics and departments, please see the Pulse page for a description of disaster response teams.
Emergency Response Coordinator (ERC)
Emergency Response Coordinators are the point-of-contact for Campus Emergency Management with regard to emergency planning, training, exercises and response for their building or department. They are responsible to develop an Emergency Response Plan (ERP) for their building. The plan is supported by departmental leadership, and where necessary, coordinated with other departments within a building or a department that occupies space in multiple buildings. Campus Emergency Management personnel train and assist ERCs in their responsibilities.
Emergency Response Plan (ERP)
The Emergency Response Plan identifies key individuals for response operations, including Emergency Management personnel, Public Safety, Emergency Assembly Point Coordinators, and Area Captains. The plan has basic information that support emergency priorities. For instance, building Emergency Response Plans contain annexes for evacuation, shelter-in-place, and secure-in-place. The plan contains information about emergency supplies, crisis communication and provides annexes which may address unique characteristics of a building (e.g. has lab space, has childcare operations, has specific hazards).
Download the Emergency Response Plan Template (Ver. 9, April 2024)
Contact Stormy Sideria for assistance in completing your Emergency Response Plan.
Emergency Assembly Point Coordinators (EAPCs)
Emergency Assembly Point Coordinators are staff members from districts within Facilities Management. Their role is to deploy to Emergency Assembly Points across campus and act as a relay for information from Emergency Response Coordinators to emergency management personnel located in our Emergency Coordination Center (ECC).
Information Flow in an Evacuation
As a building is evacuated, either as a result of a fire alarm or other hazard, the ERT members do the following:
- Area captains sweep designated areas encouraging and assisting in evacuations without putting themselves in harm's way, then report to the ERC
- ERCs compile information from their area captains and report to the EAP wearing a green vest (supplied by emergency management) and report information to the EAPC
- EAPCs, ERCs and evacuees wait for further direction or all clear from emergency management or first response personnel (e.g. police officers or firefighters)
As ERTs evacuate a building, they are taking note of the following five key pieces of information:
- Number of people deceased
- Number of people injured
- Number of people evacuated from the building
- Number of people NOT evacuated from the building
- Building damage, if any
If an ERC arrives at an EAP and there is no coordinator there to pass along information, the ERC may call 801-585-2677 (5-COPS), which will reach a University of Utah Department of Public Safety dispatcher. The phone number is printed on the EAP sign for reference.
Example Information Flow
