Emergency Preparedness

Building Emergency Plans

A Building Emergency Plan (BEP) is required for each occupied UC Berkeley building. The plan is considered part of every building’s basic health and safety responsibility. BEP’s contain information for a variety of emergency situations, including medical emergencies, power outages, hazardous material spills, fires, bomb threats, civil disturbances, and earthquakes.

It is important for staff to read and understand their worksite(s)’s BEP before an emergency occurs. Managers should share safety information with faculty, staff, and students, brief all new personnel as they join the department, and keep copies of the BEP in accessible locations. The BEP must be made available to all occupants upon request.

Download the Berkeley Way West Building Emergency Plan here.

Run-Hide-Fight (active attacker response)

Compassion alert: Please be advised that the information contained on this page and in these videos may activate various forms of trauma. Topics include: active shooting/mass-shooting, violence, injury, death, and police response. While being prepared for this scenario is important, please proceed with caution if any of these topics may activate you. It is recommended that you use the personal support resources outlined here coupled with your self-care practices, to process the information provided.

It is important to be prepared to respond to an active shooter/attacker, should this scenario occur on campus or in a public setting. In this type of scenario, there is no time to wait for instructions; you are empowered to make the real-time decisions you feel are safest for yourself, and preparedness is key. While it can be unsettling, you are encouraged to view any or all of these videos, each of which outline the Run-Hide-Fight response:

Video/animation in a campus setting
Developed by UC San Diego, 9 min.
Video/dramatization in an office setting
Developed by the Dept. of Homeland Security, 6 min.
Video/dramatization in a public/bar setting
Developed by the FBI, 4.5 min.
For more in-depth information on the Run-Hide-Fight response, view the March 2024 training:
- Recording (presentation starts at 3:50)
- Presentation slides

Run-Hide-Fight response summary:

RUN (evacuate), when an active shooter is in your vicinity

If there is an escape path, quickly and cautiously evacuate in a direction away from the attacker.
Leave your belongings (except your cell phone) and don’t hesitate—seconds matter.
Evacuate whether others agree to or not. Help others escape, if possible. Prevent others from entering the area.
Running, particularly in a zig-zag fashion, makes you harder to hit and improves your chances of survival. Don’t stop until you reach a safe location.
Call 911 when you are safe.
Keep your empty hands raised and clearly visible to first responders. Be prepared to follow police instructions.

HIDE, if evacuation is not possible:

Find a place to hide that is out of the shooter’s view, that provides protection if shots are fired in your direction, and that does not trap or restrict your options for movement.
If possible, enter a room and lock and/or barricade the door, turn off the lights, move away from windows, stay quiet, and text 911 (include the exact address of your location).
Turn off or silence your phone to avoid attracting the attention of the attacker.

FIGHT, as a last resort, and only if your life is in danger:

Enlist the help of anyone hiding with you to surprise and ambush the attacker.
Attempt to incapacitate the attacker.
Act with physical aggression.
Use available objects as improvised weapons.
Commit to your actions.

Additional preparedness actions you can start taking today:

Train your brain to be more aware of your surroundings. Wherever you go, be aware of alternate exits, including windows and emergency exits. Have a plan; plan for the worst; think “what if” scenarios.
In your work area, identify all evacuation paths – out of your immediate work area and out of your building. Consider possible hiding places; consider how furniture or other improvised tools could be used to barricade the door(s).
Create a plan to account for others in your work area. Add the cell phone numbers of all of your work area neighbors / all of your team members into a group on your cell phone for ease of contacting and accounting for each other.
Sign-up for UC Berkeley WarnMe and AC Alert for Alameda County.