Emergency Exits, Evacuation Drills, and Post-Crash Procedures
Emergency Exits, Evacuation Drills, and Post-Crash Procedures
This domain tests where every exit is, how each opens, how often students must drill, and the order of priorities after a crash.
Exits and evacuation
A typical Illinois school bus has the service door, a rear emergency door, side emergency doors or windows, and roof hatches. Know the release for each: the rear door handle, the side window latch, and the roof hatch bar. Evacuate through the front door unless it is blocked or the fire is ahead of it; use the rear door for an engine or front fire. Move students at least 100 feet away, upwind and uphill from a spill or fire, and keep them together.
Drills
Illinois requires at least three evacuation drills per school year, with one conducted within the first 90 days. Drivers conduct the drills, practice front and rear exits, and document them.
Post-crash
Stop, set the parking brake, check for injuries, and call 911. Do not move an injured person unless there is fire, fuel, or traffic danger. Turn off the engine, set out reflective triangles when safe, and evacuate if there is fire or a hazardous spill. Account for every student by name, then notify dispatch and the school. Exchange information and complete the required reports. A CDL holder involved in a fatal crash or a crash resulting in a citation is subject to post-crash alcohol testing.
Worked example
Smoke comes from the engine while students are aboard. Reasoning: the fire is in front, so the front door may be unsafe. The driver stops, sets the brake, tells students to leave by the rear door in an orderly line, moves them 100 feet upwind, calls 911, and counts by name before re-boarding anyone.
Traps
Opening the hood with a fire inside; letting students return for belongings; forgetting roof hatches; failing to count heads at the rally point.