4.0 Purpose of the System Emergency Response Plan
The purpose of the Waterloo Catholic District School Board System Emergency Response Plan is to facilitate the orderly, timely, efficient deployment and coordination of the Board’s emergency services and personnel to provide the earliest possible response to an emergency in order to:
- ensure the safety and security of students, staff, and property;
- assist the area municipalities, coterminous school boards and/or the Regional Municipality, as requested;
- quickly restore the facilities and services of the Board;
- inform the community about the status of students, personnel, facilities, and services of the Board; and
- ensure that group crisis intervention services for witnesses and others affected by an incident are provided by the Traumatic Events Response Team in order to manage the emotional and physical reactions to the crisis situation and ensure the availability of spiritual counseling as required.
The key is mitigation and prevention. It is easier to prevent or guard against negative situations than it is to recover from them.