Romania gives schools drone-alert procedures: pupils to basements, parents to stay away
In September 2026 Romania's Department for Emergency Situations sent schools clear rules for air alerts: pupils go to basements or windowless rooms and stay there until the all-clear, and parents should not come to collect them. The same logic applies to schools anywhere.
What happened
After talks with the Education Ministry on 11 September, Romania’s Department for Emergency Situations sent guidance to school inspectorates for drone alerts. Schools must identify shelter spaces in advance: equipped basements or interior, windowless rooms on lower floors. When an alert sounds, activity stops calmly, pupils move away from windows and glass façades, and those outside go into the nearest building without collecting their things. Everyone stays sheltered until the official all-clear.
Why it matters
The most important rule is also the hardest for parents: don’t go to the school during an alert. The journey puts you and your child at risk, and the school has its own procedure. The Education Minister asked schools to explain the procedures in an age-appropriate way, without drama.
What you can do
- Talk to your child about what happens at school during an alert so it doesn’t come as a shock.
- Agree in your family emergency plan who collects them after the all-clear and where you meet if you can’t reach each other.
- Use the same rules at home: our guide to taking shelter during an air alert explains how to pick the safest spot in an apartment.
Helpful guides
- Emergencies Air raid and drone alerts: taking shelter What to do when an air raid siren sounds or a phone alert warns of an aerial threat: the safest spot in an apartment, the two-wall rule, what to do outdoors or in a car, how to set up a shelter corner and what to do with drone debris.
- Emergency kit Family emergency plan Meeting points, an out-of-town contact, who picks up the kids, what happens to pets. A simple one-page plan any family can make in an evening.