HomeMy WebLinkAbout10/22/1942
SWC:A-12l
SUFFOLK COUNTY WJ-l.R COUHCIL
Office of the Director of Civilian Protection
Griffing J-l.venue Riverhead, New York
October 22, 1942
TO:
FROM:
SUBJECT:
Deputy County Directors
County Director of Civilian Protection
~~lement 12 swc:A-l06 (Evacuation of School Children)
Inasmuch as Suffolk County has an approximate school population
of 32,000 children attending classes in about 175 bUildings, the
subject of evacuation has 6iven all concerned a great deal of worry.
In the event bombing should occur the ad~quate protection of these
children is of a primary importance and necessitates careful planning
and organization.
Due to the geographical locations of the various schools in our
towns and villages, it is not possible that one plan could be drawn
by either the State or County Office which would apply, or which would
be workable, in every school district as each district has its own
distinct problem.
AS you bo doubt know, a meeting of district superintendents, vil-
lage superintendents and supervising principals was held in Riverhead
the afternoon of October 13th, 21 school men attending. The memoran-
dum used as a basis for the discussion was #23 by Lt. 'General William
Haskell, Director of Civilian Protection of the State of New York.
No doubt you are familiar with this bulletin inasmuch as they were
mailed directly to deputy county directors.
On Friday evening, October 16th, a meeting of all deputy county
directors was held at Riverhead. School evacuation was one of the
main topics of this meeting and the following instructions are the
result of the above two mentioned meetings plus a conference with
General Thomas W. Darrah. The following orders will supersede all
prior instructions relative to school evacuation during daylight hours.
1 - Schools are to be evacuated on the first signal received,
whether it be yellow, blue or red, with the following exceptions:
a. that the school building falls in Class "A" as
defined by Memorandum No. 23 of Lt. General Haskell
b. that in the event bombs are falling children shall
not be evacuated but shall be held within the school
in the safest area
c. in the event that the kindergarden and the first and
second grades would be unable to proceed to assigned
shelters within a period of 5-7 minutes
d. in specific circumstances under which evacuation has
actually been proven impractical
2 - Each school principal is to submit to you an evacuation plan.
This plan should be worked out by both the deputy county director and
the responsible school authority and after being approved by you a
copy should be forwarded to this office for both approval and filing.
3 - The establishment of the following protective measures should
be brought to the attention of the responsible school authorities:
a. School air raid wardens should be appointed
b. Fire equipment should be checked
c. School fire watehers should be appointed
d. Air raid "safe areas" should be properly posted
e. Teacher guides should be designated in advance
There have been no changes in the procedure affecting schools
during evening hours when basketball games, dances, etc. are being
held.
/cw
FLOYD D. HOUSTON,
Director of Civilian Protection