Emergency procedures: Tips for planning and managing them best:
Planning emergency procedures in the workplace is essential to ensure the safety and protection of employees in the event of accidents, fires and other potentially hazardous events.
In this article, you will find useful tips to optimize emergency procedures: plan, organize and identify the correct procedures to carry out for evacuating the workplace.
Plan workplace emergency procedures now:
The first 4 suggestions concern the emergency planning phase, starting from the compilation of the DVR and the Emergency Plan, up to the training of staff and the preparation of emergency signs.
1. Perform risk assessment and DVR:
Each company is required to identify specific potential risks. This assessment flows into the specific document, the DVR, which must take into account the particularities of the activity being carried out. For this reason it should include an overview of the activities carried out on site and the different types of risk related to them.
The risk assessment always takes into consideration the presence of dangerous substances in the workplace, but also of processes and materials that could trigger threats, such as fires, gas leaks, chemical accidents, trauma, etc. For an effective evaluation it is also necessary to take into account the structural characteristics of the building;
2. Develop the Emergency Plan:
Companies with more than 10 employees and companies that carry out activities subject to the control of the Fire Brigade are required to draw up the Emergency Plan.
This document is based on the risk assessment and outlines the specific actions to be taken in the event of an accident or dangerous event. Furthermore, the emergency plan must contain the actions to be implemented in the event of a fire, the provisions for requesting emergency assistance and providing the necessary information upon their arrival and the specific measures to assist people with special needs.
In workplaces where there is an obligation to draw up an emergency plan, the employer is, however, required to adopt organizational and management measures to be implemented in the event of an emergency, reporting them in the Risk Assessment Document; for fire warden course in UAE get in touch with us
3. Inform and raise awareness among employees:
It is important to inform workers about the specific aspects of the activity in relation, for example, to the specific risks linked to the tasks performed, the location of the escape routes, the prevention and protection measures adopted in the workplace, the names of the staff responsible for applying emergency measures.
The information must be provided in a clear and easily understandable way, for example through specific signs or written notices.
Even going beyond legal obligations, to increase the level of safety in the workplace it is also advisable to establish regular training and awareness sessions. In fact, improving awareness of the risks present in the workplace helps prevent accidents. Furthermore, it also ensures that everyone is aware of emergency procedures and how to act appropriately in the event of an alarm;
4. Plan and indicate emergency exits:
Emergency exits must be identified and clearly highlighted. The employer must ensure that they are always accessible and free from obstacles. Safety signs must be affixed visibly, unambiguously and with adequate lighting at all times of the day.
Organize the evacuation in an optimal way:
In this second block, you will find 4 further tips to better manage emergencies when they arise, instructing the staff and ensuring that everything works as best as possible during the evacuation procedures.
5. Designate emergency responders:
Specific roles are also assigned in the Emergency Plan: emergency managers, safety officers and fire prevention officers. These will also be responsible for coordinating the evacuation of the workplace in the event of an accident. By law, the workers identified to fill this role must be trained on evacuation procedures and the management of emergency situations with specific training courses;