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Companies Should Be Reviewing Emergency Plans with Employees
With the increased threat of terrorist attacks, and basically throughout the year, all companies and organizations should be reviewing their emergency plans with employees, American Society of Safety Engineers' (ASSE) officials said today. From the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to Homeland Security to the Red Cross there are excellent resources available that provide guidance on developing and implementing emergency plans, including ASSE safety resources. When reviewing these plans, companies must realize that all contingency plans must be flexible since each emergency has its own unique set of circumstances and risk.
"The most important asset an employer has is its employees," ASSE Regional Vice President Brian Clarke, CSP, said today. "It is of paramount importance for employers to have and communicate with their employees plans and procedures aimed at increasing their safety. However, there is a need for flexibility and for an understanding of all the hazards that exist and the ways of addressing these hazards. Emergency planning encompasses many kinds of risks and many of our ASSE members have already built flexibility into their plans. We advise others to do the same."
An organization and business should always turn to occupational safety, health and environmental professionals, whether on staff or through organizations like ASSE or their federal, state and local governments to help develop and review their contingency plans. ASSE books 'Disaster Recovery Planning' (third edition), 'Loss Prevention and Security Procedures: Practical applications for contemporary problems,' and 'Security Operations Management' are helpful resources along with business emergency planning tips located on the ASSE News web site at www.asse.org .
Web sites with valuable contingency planning information include OSHA's suggested emergency preparedness, response and evacuation procedures at www.osha.gov/SLTC/smallbusiness/sec10.html , www.osha.gov/SLTC/etools/evacuation/alarms.html , the U.S. Homeland Security web site at www.ready.gov, the www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/emres/chemagent.html , www.tsa.gov , www.redcross.org and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) at www.fema.gov .
"Safety professionals understand hazard and vulnerability analysis," Clarke added. "ASSE suggests that businesses and all employers review their prepared plans with a new appreciation for the need to be flexible and begin to understand the kinds of hazards that can exist today and review these with their employees."
For example, for those employers housed in a "high-rise building," OSHA suggests that appropriate exits, alarms, emergency lighting, communication systems, and sprinkler systems are critical for employee safety. When designing and maintaining exits, it is essential to ensure that routes leading to the exits, as well as the areas beyond the exits, are accessible and free from materials or items that would impede individuals from easily and effectively evacuating.
"An emergency is not a time to plan, it is a time to react," Clarke said. "As occupational safety, health and environmental professionals do every day, you must look at what could be the possible risks and hazards and develop and implement a safety management plan that can be integrated into all areas. These include the workplace, the home, schools and while traveling."
State and local building code officials can help employers ensure that the building's design and safety systems are adequate. Preparing in advance to safely evacuate the building is critical to the safety of employees who work there. Before an emergency occurs, OSHA suggests that employees in high-rise buildings should: 1) be familiar with the worksite's emergency evacuation plan; 2) know the pathway to at least two alternative exits from every room /area at the workplace; 3) recognize the sound /signaling method of the fire /evacuation alarms; 4) know who to contact in an emergency and how to contact them; 5) know how many desks or cubicles are between the workstation and two of the nearest exits so escape in the dark is possible if necessary; 6) know where the fire /evacuation alarms are located and how to use them; and, 7) report damaged or malfunctioning safety systems and back-up systems.
Because every high-rise building has unique characteristics involving location, design, construction, and occupancy, this information covers only some of the basic considerations for safe evacuation. These recommendations do not substitute for a site-specific evacuation program nor does it detail specific OSHA or OSHA-approved state plan standards that may be applicable to individual worksites.
In addition to the work site, employers, safety professionals and the Department of Homeland Security recommend that for the home, families make an emergency preparedness kit, a communication plan, and stay informed. Emergency preparedness kits should include such items as three days' worth of nonperishable food and water, flashlights, a battery-powered radio, extra batteries, a first aid kit, and an adequate supply of required medications.
For direct links to federal web sites with information on homeland security, travel safety, emergency preparation and response, chemical agent information and to order ASSE books on emergency planning, security operations and disaster recovery planning check ASSE's web site at www.asse.org or contact ASSE customer service at customerservice@asse.org or 847-699-2929. Founded in 1911, ASSE is the oldest and largest professional safety organization and is committed to protecting people, property and the environment. Its more than 30,000 occupational safety, health and environmental professional members represent all industries, government, labor and education.
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