The actions taken in the initial minutes of an emergency are critical. A prompt warning to employees to evacuate, shelter or lockdown can save lives. A call for help to public emergency services that provides full and accurate information will help the dispatcher send the right responders and equipment. An employee trained to administer first aid or perform CPR can be lifesaving. Action by employees with knowledge of building and process systems can help control a leak and minimize damage to the facility and the environment.
The first step when developing an emergency response plan is to conduct a risk assessment to identify potential emergency scenarios. An understanding of what can happen will enable you to determine resource requirements and to develop plans and procedures to prepare your business. The emergency plan should be consistent with your performance objectives.
At the very least, every facility should develop and implement an emergency plan for protecting employees, visitors, contractors, and anyone else in the facility. This part of the emergency plan is called “protective actions for life safety” and includes building evacuation (“fire drills”), sheltering from severe weather.
Key benefits
Businesses need a continuity plan in order to be compliant with the Health & Safety Executive (HSE). Having Peoplesafe Alert in place aids compliance for the HSE and BS 22301. Peoplesafe Alert is:
- Safe and secure – encrypted service delivered from ISO 27001 & 9001 certified Microsoft data centers in the UK.
- Fast – 2,000 messages sent per second.
- Targeted – messages can be sent to specific groups or geofenced locations with global reach.
- Dedicated – specific service for critical situations that can override silent settings and send repeat notifications until responded to.
- Auditable – reports available in real-time and for historic use.
- Simple to deploy – integration with Active Directory reduces management overheads.
Most importantly, Peoplesafe Alert is easy to use because you don’t want complexity in a crisis. It’s delivered proven results for everyone who has used it.
Warning, Notifications, and Communications
Plans should define the most appropriate protective action for each hazard to ensure the safety of employees and others within the building. Determine how you will warn building occupants to take protective action. Develop protocols and procedures to alert first responders including public emergency services, trained employees, and management. Identify how you will communicate with management and employees during and following an emergency.
Roles and Responsibilities for Building Owners and Facility Managers
Assign personnel the responsibility of controlling access to the emergency scene and for keeping people away from unsafe areas. Others should be familiar with the locations and functions of controls for building utility, life safety, and protection systems. These systems include ventilation, electrical, water, and sanitary systems; emergency power supplies; detection, alarm, communication and warning systems; fire suppression systems; pollution control and containment systems; and security and surveillance systems. Personnel should be assigned to operate or supervise these systems as directed by public emergency services if they are on-site.
The site and Facility Plans and Information
Public emergency services have limited knowledge about your facility and its hazards. Therefore, it is important to document information about your facility. That information is vital to ensure emergency responders can safely stabilize an incident that may occur. Documentation of building systems may also prove valuable when a utility system fails—such as when a water pipe breaks and no one knows how to shut off the water.
Compile a site plan and plans for each floor of each building. Plans should show the layout of access roads, parking areas, buildings on the property, building entrances, the locations of emergency equipment, and the locations of controls for building utility and protection systems. Instructions for operating all systems and equipment should be accessible to emergency responders.
Provide a copy of the plan to the public emergency services that would respond to your facility and others with responsibility for building management and security. Store the plan with other emergency planning information such as chemical Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS), which are required by Hazard Communication or “right to know” regulations.
