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Emergency Action Plan
Facilitate and Organize Employee Actions for Emergencies
B Y
CRAIG
HARDY
An emergency action plan (EAP) is a
written document required by particular
OSHA standards. The purpose of an EAP
is to facilitate and organize employer
and employee actions during workplace
emergencies.
Well developed emergency plans and
proper employee training (such that employees
understand their roles and responsibilities
within the plan) will result in fewer
and less severe employee injuries and less
structural damage to the facility during
emergencies. A poorly prepared plan, likely
will lead to a disorganized evacuation or
emergency response, resulting in confusion,
injury, and property damage. Putting together a comprehensive emergency
action plan that deals with those issues
specific to your worksite is not difficult.
It involves taking what was learned from a
workplace evaluation and describing how
employees will respond to different types of emergencies,
taking into account specific
worksite layout, structural features, and
emergency systems.
At a minimum, the plan, according to 29 CFR 1910.38(c), must include but is not
limited to the following elements:
Means of reporting fires and
other emergencies;
Evacuation procedures and
emergency escape route assignments;
Procedures to be followed by
employees who remain to operate critical plant operations before
they evacuate;
Procedures to account for all
employees after an emergency evacuation has been completed;
Rescue and medical duties for
those employees who are to perform them;
Names or job titles of persons
who can be contacted for further information or explanation of
duties under the plan.
Although they are not specifically required
by OSHA, you may find it helpful to
include the following in your plan:
A description of the alarm
system to be used to notify employees (including disabled employees) to evacuate and/or take
other actions. The alarms used for different
actions should be distinctive and might
include horn blasts, sirens, or even public
address systems.
The site of an alternative communications
center to be used in the event of a fire or
explosion; and
A secure on- or offsite location to store
originals or duplicate copies of accounting
records, legal documents, your employees
emergency contact lists, and other essential
records.
Implementing the plan
Drafting an emergency action plan (EAP)
is not enough to ensure the safety of your
employees. When an evacuation is necessary,
you will need responsible, trained individuals
who can supervise and coordinate
activities to ensure a safe and successful
evacuation. An EAP will be useful only if
its content is up to date and employees are
sufficiently educated and trained before an
actual evacuation.
A very simple plan will suffice in offices,
small retail shops, and small manufacturing
settings where there are few or no hazardous
materials or processes, and employees evacuate
when alarms sound or when notified by
public address systems. More complex plans
are required in workplaces containing hazardous
materials or workplaces where employees
fight fires, perform rescue and
medical tasks, or delay evacuation after
alarms sound to shut down critical equipment.
It is essential that the emergency action
plan developed be site specific with respect
to emergency conditions evaluated, evacuation
policies and procedures, emergency reporting
mechanisms, and alarm systems.
The best emergency action plans include
employees in the planning process, specify
what employees should do during an emergency,
and ensure that employees receive
proper training for emergencies. When you
include your employees in your planning,
encourage them to offer suggestions about
potential hazards, worst-case scenarios, and
proper emergency responses.
After you develop the plan, review it with
your employees to make sure everyone
knows what to do before, during, and after
an emergency. Keep a copy of your emergency
action plan in a convenient location
where employees can get to it, or provide a
copy to all employees. If you have 10 or
fewer employees, you may communicate your plan orally.
It is common practice to select a responsible
individual to lead and coordinate your
emergency plan and evacuation. It is critical
that employees know who the coordinator
is and understand that this person has the
authority to make decisions during emergencies.
The coordinator should be responsible
for assessing the situation to determine
whether an emergency exists requiring activation of the emergency procedures, overseeing
emergency procedures, notifying and
coordinating with outside emergency services,
and directing shutdown of utilities or
plant operations if necessary.
In other instances, local emergency officials,
such as the local fire department, may
order you to evacuate your premises. If you
have access to radio or television, listen to
newscasts to keep informed and follow whatever official orders you receive.
When emergency officials, such as the local
fire department, respond to and emergency
at your workplace, they will assume
responsibility for the safety of building occupants
and have the authority to make decisions
regarding evacuation and whatever
other actions are necessary to protect life
and property. The highest-ranking responder
will assume the incident command role
and will work with the onsite emergency coordinator,
but will be responsible for directing
all response activities.
Before implementing the emergency
action plan, the employer must designate
and train enough people to assist in the
safe and orderly emergency evacuation of
employees, according to [29 CFR
1910.38(e)]. Employers should review
the plan with each employee when the
initial plan is developed and when each
employee is initially assigned to the job.
Educate your employees about the types
of emergencies that may occur and train
them in the proper course of action. The
size of your workplace and workforce,
processes used, materials handled, and availability of onsite or outside resources
will determine your training requirements.
Be sure all employees understand the
function and elements of your emergency
action plan, including types of potential
emergencies, reporting procedures, alarm
systems, evacuation plans, and shutdown
procedures.
Discuss any special hazards you may
have onsite such as flammable materials,
toxic chemicals, radioactive sources, or
water-reactive substances. An employer
must inform employees of the fire hazards
to which they are exposed and review
with each employee those parts of
the fire prevention plan necessary for
self-protection.
Clearly communicate to your
employees who will be in charge during an emergency to minimize
confusion. General training for your employees should also address
the following:
Individual roles and
responsibilities;
Threats, hazards, and
protective actions;
Notification, warning, and
communications procedures;
Means for locating family members in an
emergency;
Emergency response procedures;
Evacuation, shelter, and
accountability procedures;
Location and use of common
emergency equipment; and
Emergency shutdown procedures.
And remember, if training is not reinforced
it will be forgotten. Consider
retraining employees annually.
You also may want to train your employees
in first-aid procedures, including
protection against bloodborne pathogens;
respiratory protection, including use of an
escape-only respirator; and methods for
preventing unauthorized access to the site.
Once you have reviewed your emergency
action plan with your employees and everyone
has had the proper training, it is a good
idea to hold practice drills as often as necessary
to keep employees prepared. Include
outside resources such as fire and police departments
when possible. After each drill,
gather management and employees to evaluate
the effectiveness of the drill. Identify
the strengths and weaknesses of your plan
and work to improve it.
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