When Vehicles Hit Classrooms: Preparedness Tips for Early Childhood Programs

By Janifar Kamal Nova

A recent incident in Wilmington, Delaware, involved an SUV crashing into the exterior wall of Young Expressions Childcare Services. Thankfully, no children or staff were inside at the time, and the driver sustained only minor injuries (WDEL News). However, for childcare providers across the country, this incident serves as a stark reminder: emergencies don’t always occur inside the building. Vehicle-into-building events are more common than most providers realize. Preparedness must extend beyond fire drills and first aid kits.

Why It Matters for Early Childhood Programs

Vehicle crashes into buildings are not as rare as they may seem. Whether due to driver error, medical events, or mechanical failure, these accidents can cause major damage and pose life-threatening risks when children are present.

These types of vehicle-into-building crashes are more common than many realize. According to the Storefront Safety Council, vehicles crash into U.S. buildings more than 100 times a day, causing up to 16,000 injuries and 2,600 deaths annually, often due to pedestrian errors, medical events, or mechanical failure. Childcare programs are not immune:

April 2025 – Centerton, AR: A pickup plowed through a preschool classroom wall, injuring three children.

March 2025 – Houston, TX: A daycare teacher was killed shielding toddlers when a car crashed into the center’s playroom.

January 2025 – Boise, ID: An SUV struck a home-based program during nap time; a quick evacuation prevented injuries.

July 2025 – Kent, Washington: A car slammed into a building housing a child daycare, and two people were hospitalized with life-threatening injuries. 

Many incidents occur at low speeds and involve pedal error, exactly the kind of crash that simple interventions like curbs, wheel stops, or planters can help deflect. (See storefrontsafety.org for more data and design guidance.) 

These events highlight the importance of site-wide emergency preparedness, extending beyond fire drills and first aid kits to include building safety, staff readiness, and robust communication protocols with families and emergency responders.

Emergency Preparedness: What Early Childhood Education Programs Can Do

A note on feasibility

Every early childhood setting varies. Some programs operate in leased storefronts, while others are located in historic or zoning-restricted buildings. Many family child-care homes also share space with regular living areas. Not every site can install fixed bollards or redesign a whole parking lot overnight. Start where you are: identify your highest-risk zones, then choose the safest, permissible, and affordable barrier, whether that’s repositioning existing parking, adding portable wheel stops, lining up sturdy planters, or working with your landlord on removable sleeves or decorative options that meet local codes. Even small, incremental changes can reduce impact force and buy valuable seconds to protect children and staff.

Why do we understand these constraints?

For over ten years, the Institute for Childhood Preparedness (ICP) has partnered closely with early childhood programs daily, from family child-care homes and leased storefront centers to historic facilities constrained by strict zoning codes. Having trained hundreds of thousands of educators across the U.S. and internationally, we understand that “one-size-fits-all” advice rarely works for everyone. Our hands-on experience allows us to customize solutions to your specific circumstances, budget constraints, landlord approvals, historic district regulations, and even the daily routines of caring for children in your own home, helping you move from a good idea to real improvements faster than any generic checklist ever could.

Where to start: Use a layered approach. Begin with the most manageable fix for your site, then expand as your budget, approvals, or renovations permit. The checklist below is arranged from quick, low-cost adjustments you can make this week to larger upgrades that might require planning and permits.

1 Map & Buffer Impact Zones

• Sketch your site. Highlight any wall, playground fence, or window within 25 ft of parking, a drop-off lane, or traffic moving faster than 15 mph.

• Wheel stops and curbs. A 6- to 8-inch pre-cast concrete or recycled rubber block, bolted 3 ft from the building line, forces tires to climb the block before the bumper can hit the wall, absorbing low-speed “pedal-error” impacts.

• Raised landscape beds and planters. Wooden planters, wine barrels, or galvanized troughs filled with soil or rock create a 2- to 3-foot buffer and enhance the entrances.

• Staff-car shielding. Reserve the spaces closest to the building for employee vehicles; a parked car acts as a “sacrificial barrier” during business hours.

• Interior buffers. Keep nap areas, reading corners, and cribs on interior walls. Anchor cubbies or bookcases along exterior walls to add an extra layer.

• Lighting matters. Dusk-to-dawn LED fixtures in parking areas reduce both collisions and crime.

2 Strengthen Your Emergency Operations Plan (EOP)

• Broaden the hazards. Add vehicle intrusions, gas leaks, utility outages, and structural damage to the all-hazards EOP.

• Clarify role cards. Laminate one card per position, identify who:

– Leads each evacuation group (including floaters/subs)

– Calls 911 and shuts off utilities

– manages parent messaging and reunification

• Plan for special populations. Detail how to move non-ambulatory infants, children using mobility devices, or those who may become dysregulated by noise and chaos.

• Pre-arrange a relocation site. Secure an MOU with a nearby church, community center, or partner program for temporary classrooms. As part of the MOU, see if you can get access to their Wi-Fi network - this helps if cell phone towers are inaccessible or clogged with other traffic. Also, see if you would be able to pre-stage some critical items at their site - a bag containing some diapers, snacks, and even some toys would help make this transition easier. 

• Paper back-ups. Store attendance sheets, parent contacts, and medical authorizations in the go-bag in case power or Wi-Fi is down. It is also advisable to store this information in the cloud, so that you can access it if you are off-site. Google Drive, iCloud, and Dropbox are just some of the available storage options. 

3 Practice & Refine Through Drills

• Tabletop first. Walk through a vehicle-strike scenario at a staff meeting, then schedule a live drill. The Institute for Childhood Preparedness routinely designs customized tabletop drills to help you think through these scenarios. 

• Vary timing and conditions. Drill once during outdoor play and once during naptime to test low-mobility responses.

• Micro-drill monthly. Five-minute spot checks (e.g., “Which door is our secondary exit?”) keep skills fresh without disrupting the day.

4 Safeguard Utilities & Inspections

• Label shut-offs. Mark gas, water, and electrical shut-offs on laminated floor plans in every classroom and go-bag.

• Vendor call sheet. Tape the emergency plumber, electrician, glass, and structural engineer numbers inside the emergency clipboard.

• Annual “power-down walk-through.” Each lead teacher practices cutting utilities while the maintenance staff observes.

• Inspector rapport. Identify who would be responsible for inspecting your facility - note the names/phone numbers/agencies of these organizations and representatives. A friendly relationship with your local inspector accelerates clearance to reopen after repairs.

5 Plan for Reopening & Recovery

• Document damage early. Photograph structural impacts and keep receipts; it speeds up insurance and licensing clearances.

• Address emotional safety. Reassure families with daily updates and a predictable routine; young children need to see that their caregivers are calm and confident.

• Dig deeper with Preschool Preparedness for After a Disaster. Andy Roszak’s third book walks directors step-by-step through reopening checklists, trauma-informed reintegration, and strategies, ideal for programs facing repairs or relocation after any emergency. Available at http://childhoodpreparedness.org/books

6 Maintain Reliable Communication

• We strongly encourage programs to use walkie-talkies - we believe in it so much that we have actually developed our own brand of walkie-talkies just for early childhood programs. Why ICP Walkie Talkies? (Learn more at walkietalkies.us)

– Nationwide coverage across the U.S. & Canada (cellular, not Wi-Fi)

– Private, secure, encrypted, no random chatter on your channel

– Crystal-clear audio with no static

– Up to five-day battery life and just five ounces, perfect for all-day wear

– Designed specifically for early childhood environments

• Family notification templates. Pre-draft a 160-character SMS and a longer email covering incident details, child status, and pick-up instructions. Interested in taking communication to the next level? Check out our ICP Mass Notification text messaging system - http://childhoodpreparedness.org/texting

Take Action Today

Don’t wait for a crisis to reveal the gaps in your preparedness plan. Whether your program is located in a quiet neighborhood or a busy city block, proactive planning saves lives. Let’s make your space safer together. 

Visit http://icp.us/ to learn more about our services or schedule a training session.