When it comes to emergency preparedness protection, it's important to understand the five phases of emergency management prevention. This includes prevention of human hazards, such as those resulting from natural disasters or terrorist attacks (both physical and biological). The cycle of preparation is continuous, involving planning, organizing, training, equipping, exercising, evaluating and taking corrective action. Training and exercise plans are essential for preparedness, focusing on responding to all hazards, incidents and emergencies. Preparedness measures involve developing mutual aid agreements and memorandums of understanding, training response personnel and citizens, conducting disaster exercises to strengthen training and testing capacities, and presenting educational campaigns on all hazards.
Emergency training and preparedness plans help increase the community's capacity to respond when a disaster occurs. When drafting an Emergency Action Plan (EAP), it's important to select a responsible person to direct and coordinate the emergency plan and evacuation. This plan should include measures or actions that can prevent an emergency, reduce the possibility of an emergency, or reduce the harmful effects of inevitable emergencies. It should also consider workers with special needs (who may need additional help during an evacuation), how to use and instruct others to use the partner system, hazardous areas to avoid during an emergency evacuation, and workers designated to help in emergency situations. The National Preparedness Goal defines what it means for the entire community to be prepared for all types of disasters and emergencies.
Having an emergency preparedness plan is as important to the survival of your small business as your business plan. Larger industrial operations may have special fire brigades or emergency response units trained to perform shutdowns and other emergency procedures when other workers need to evacuate. The OSHA Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response (HAZWOPER) standard (29 CFR 1910.120) covers emergency responses to releases of hazardous substances. Employers and workers may have to deal with an emergency when it is least expected and proper planning is needed before an emergency to respond effectively. The American Red Cross website contains links to resources on personal emergency kits, emergency planning and communications. Emergency response organizations must coordinate with employers in their jurisdictions to ensure that they are prepared to safely respond to and perform necessary rescue operations in workplaces that may pose unique or particularly hazardous conditions for personnel in emergency response.
During an emergency involving the release of a hazardous substance, emergency response workers who operate outside contaminated areas, but are expected to have contact with contaminated victims, may need level C or D personal protective equipment.
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