Shelter-in-Place – The reason behind the plan Published Dec. 17, 2010 By 341st Readiness and Emergency Management Flight MALMSTROM AIR FORCE BASE, Mont. -- The first step to building a shelter in-place, or SIP, program is to understand why. Why put in the effort? What type of situation would call for a need to duct tape plastic to all the windows, doors and vents of a room? The quick and simple answer to these questions is hazardous materials, or HAZMAT. This HAZMAT stuff goes beyond the chemical, biological and radiological agents and materials covered in any CBRNE Defense class. HAZMAT includes all toxic industrial chemicals and toxic industrial materials, or TIC/TIM. TICs and TIMs can be anywhere on an installation or off an installation in the surrounding area. Some common types found on an air base include, but are not limited to: hydrazine, chlorine and fuels of all kinds. The next question might be why not just put on a gas mask and go on about life? Two reasons: 1. The carbon filter on the mask is not National Institute of Safety and Health approved for TICs and TIMs. 2. The manner in which most TIC/TIM releases occur creates an oxygen-deficient environment. Basically what happens is the container holding the TIC/TIM breaks open and the material is released into the environment. Most TIC/TIM vapors are heavier than air. Any heavy concentration of vapors (cloud) moves downwind at a pace slower than the current wind speed and displaces the breathable air. The solution to this situation is to create a safe place to keep the bad air out and the good air in - a shelter-in-place location, which is anticipated will be tested during the next Air Force Global Strike Command inspection of the base. Picking the place Where will the SIP location be? Any facility that personnel consider a "work center" should have a SIP plan. The plan consists of identifying the best room in the facility based on the number of people planned to be in the building (not just the number of workers), having a collection of SIP necessities, creating detailed and specific instructions that can be understood by anyone, and informing personnel of SIP procedures. The facility manager should know the inside and outside of the building the best. Therefore, it is best that the facility manager be tasked with identifying the SIP location. The room should be above ground level (most TICs/TIMs are heavier than air) and have as few windows, doors and vents as possible. The room should also provide about 10 square feet of floor space per person; so a facility with a work force of 10 people should have a SIP room that is at least 100 square feet. Other bonus features are access to a rest room, land line, TV, and a water supply. These items are not required and are merely a convenience. The kit Once a location has been chosen, a SIP kit should be put together. This kit should contain plastic sheeting (one pre-cut sheet for every SIP room opening) and the plastic should be of durable quality and not plastic garbage bags which can have inconsistencies from the manufacturing process. It's best to label the sheets according to the location they'll be taped to for quick and easy application during an emergency. Extra inches should be added to each piece to ensure the piece can be taped to a flat wall if possible. Additionally, the kit should have duct tape and scissors, a first aid kit, flashlight with batteries, some sort of communication device - this may be a cell phone, LMR, or land line - a non-airtight box to keep the items in (an airtight box could produce mold by holding moisture in), shelter-in-place procedures, inventory and inspection sheet. The plan Each shelter-in-place kit should have a set of instructions. The instructions should be specific to the location and include information on how to shut off the ventilation system (contact the 341st Civil Engineer Squadron at 731-6137 for more information about HVAC operations), what items need to be grabbed before taping up the room and specific facility quirks such as a crack or hole in the wall that needs to be covered with tape. The instructions should also include accountability and reporting instructions. These procedures should be planned at the unit level so that individual facilities forced to shelter in place will report accountability information to a single point of contact within that unit. Because of the short-notice nature of SIP situations, traditional unit control center's may not have time to be activated until the hazardous environment is mitigated. For more information or for anyone with questions, call 731-6689.