Also known as Emergency Assembly Points, Evacuation Assembly Areas, Emergency Assembly Station, etc.
These are the designated areas (or area) outside of a work facility where people should go, if the building needs to be evacuated. Check in with first-responders or members of your Crisis Action Team. Do not go back into the building until instructed to do so. These locations should be safer than staying inside of the building, during an evacuation incident – your life safety is the top priority. They may be located on-property or off-property, depending on the site selected by your organization’s leadership, facilities management and/or emergency management teams. They may also be marked with a sign – or not – but at a minimum your crisis action plan should include a floor plan/location map which shows where each of these Emergency Assembly Areas (EAA) are located.
If there are more than one EAA location, you should be designated to a primary location and a backup one, if possible. A multi-story office building may have multiple EAAs by floor or company or some other method. When you evacuate, go to your primary EAA if possible – what is key is that you check in with the Crisis Action Team or other responders for accountability. There may be further instructions – or even further evacuations or transportation – at that EAA.
If the EAA is unsafe (for example, if it is too close to an ongoing threat in the building, like a fire), go to the alternate EAA. If you have to leave the building due to an active assailant attack, go anywhere that is safer, contact first responders (like 9-1-1) and ask them where to go.