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Chapter 23 of 30 · 1 min read

Overnight Camp Emergency Accountability and Evacuation

Build plans with the site and qualified responders for fire, severe weather, missing people and evacuation. Use actual routes, buildings, communication limits and camper needs. Assign accountability and practise handovers before guests arrive.

Build emergency plans with the site and relevant qualified people. They must fit the actual buildings, roads, terrain, communication, and participants.

For fire or evacuation, use current room rosters and named assembly responsibilities. Account for staff, visitors, contractors, and participants, including anyone in the health space or off-site. Do not let a room move disappear from the evacuation record.

For severe weather, identify suitable shelter and how people reach it. Outdoor pavilions and tents should not be treated as lightning-safe shelter; use the applicable official guidance and site plan.1

For a missing person, act through the approved prompt response and escalation route. Keep the remaining group supervised. Do not invent a long waiting period or send children to search.

For evacuation, plan destinations, vehicles, accessible transport, food, medicines, records, family contact, and reunification. A list of phone numbers is not a complete evacuation plan.

Practise safely. Use tabletop scenarios and announced drills suited to participants. Do not create real fear, hide a child, or simulate danger in a way that causes harm.

Your task: Test the plan at night, with one staff member unavailable and a road or communication problem.

Sources for this page

  1. U.S. National Weather Service, Lightning Safety and Outdoor Sports Activities. Shelter and activity-stop guidance. The book does not replace a site-specific weather plan. ↩

Put this chapter to work

Optional · Putting your plan into practice

Using Bookify for this goal

This part starts with your own planning and judgement. Use the guide and its worksheets to work through it with your team.

When you are ready to put your camp plan into a booking system, you can explore a sample camp in Bookify or see what the software can help you do.