Dr. Fred Rayfield presents Decatur County Schools' new comprehensive emergency plan, as Board of Education Chairman Dr. Sydney Cochran looks on at right. The Decatur County Schools would rather be safe than sorry, as the school system recently completed a county-wide “comprehensive emergency plan.”

Dr. Fred Rayfield, superintendent of the Decatur County Schools, detailed the plan at the Thursday, Dec. 15, meeting of the Decatur County Board of Education. The plan spells out what steps need to be taken, and what protocol should be followed, in the event of an emergency at any of the district’s schools or administration buildings.

Rayfield said each school already had a solid emergency plan in place, but the district-wide plan makes sure that everything is consistent from school to school. In addition, the plan updates language and protocols so they conform to standards required by the Georgia Emergency Management Agency (GEMA).

Rayfield said the plan contains maps, evacuation routes and a variety of other safety information that would be pertinent in case of an emergency.

“There is nothing worse than to be in an emergency situation, and half of the folks who are trying to help you do not have a clear-cut protocol to operate on,” he said.

Rayfield met with new Bainbridge Public Safety Director Eric Miller earlier this month, and gave him a copy of the plan. Copies have also been distributed to City Manager Chris Hobby, the Decatur County Sheriff’s Office, the 911 dispatch office and school system personnel. The plan will also be posted at the school district’s web site, www.dcboe.com, as soon as possible.

“One of our goals this year was to get this plan cleaned up, and get it in place for our student safety issues,” Rayfield said.