Emergency Planning

What are emergency plans?

Emergency plans are procedures outlining the processes when an emergency occurs on your workplace. These plans should be aimed at advising your employees, contractors and visitors what to do.

You can alter the emergency plans dependent on the scope of the workplace and the type of work carried out. It is reommneded that you plans include the following:

List of potential emergency situations, e.g. fire, flooding, eartherquake, medical emergency
For each potential emergency situation document the procedures to take when that situation occurs. This will include instructions, training and relevant information for your employees
Include evacuation procedures
Document the steps for notifying the relevant emergency services
Procedures relating to medical treatment or assistance
Intentions and frequency for testing these emergency procedures
Floor plan of your workplace outlining the locations for:
- Medical - first aid, eye wash, defibrulators
- Fire fighting equipment - extinguishers, blankets etc
- Spill kits
- Egress - exits, lifts, walkways
- Assembly points

If your organisation operates in a low-risk environment the emergency plans might not need to be too complicated.

It is also important that every employee across the organisation is aware of the emergency coordinator and activator and the steps that will be taken to keep risk as low as possible.

If a worker is going to be attending multiple workplaces, it is required that they are aware of all relevant emergency plans.

Common emergency situations that occur in workplace are:

Gas leak
Fire
Chemical spill or leak
Water or electricity outage
Natural disaster (Earthquake, floods, cyclones, wildfires)
Robberies or bomb threats
Medical emeregncy