EMERGENCY PLANNING November 07
EMERGENCY RESPONSE PROCEDURES
Emergency Planning Aim
Harlow‟s duty is to respond effectively and efficiently to an emergency and
continue to provide its services to the community within the Integrated
Emergency Management concept as laid down by the Civil Contingencies Act
2004.
The environment within which modern councils operate continues to present
many varied challenges. These challenges can range from providing a strong
local economy and a cleaner district to earning a positive public image and
ensuring affordable decent housing.
One of the priorities is to provide a safer community and it has been
recognised that to do this Harlow Council needs to be well prepared for Civil
Emergencies.
Civil emergencies can come in many forms and can range from flooding
incidents and transport accidents to disease outbreaks and utilities failures.
They are usually characterised by the actual or threatened damage to human
welfare, the environment or national security.
Harlow Council has had plans and procedures in place to deal with the
response to a major emergency for a number of years. Recently, the 2004
Civil Contingencies Act was created which formalised the role that Local
Authorities play in the response to an emergency.
The creation of the act, along with the council‟s recognition that a major
emergency could occur anywhere within the District with little or no warning
has led to a review of Harlow Council‟s emergency planning procedures and
the production of the emergency plan.
The plan is an important aspect of Harlow Council‟s capability of being well
prepared for civil emergencies. By achieving its aims and objectives it will
ensure that a response to a civil emergency is co-ordinated, efficient and
effective.
Definition of an emergency
The Civil Contingencies Act 2004 defines an emergency as: -
(a) an event or situation that threatens serious damage to human welfare
in a place in the United Kingdom,
(b) an event or situation which threatens serious damage to the
environment of a place in the United Kingdom, or
(c) war, or terrorism, which threatens serious damage to the security of the
United Kingdom.
An event or situation “threatens damage to human welfare” only if it involves,
causes or may cause: -
(a) loss off human life,
(b) human illness or injury,
(c) homelessness,
(d) damage to property,
(e) disruption of a supply of money, food, water, energy or fuel,
(f) disruption of a system of communication,
(g) disruption of facilities for transport, or
(h) disruption of services relating to health.
An event or situation “threatens serious damage to the environment” only if it
involves, causes or may cause: -
(a) contamination of land, water or air with biological, chemical or radio-
active matter, or
(b) disruption or disruption of plant life or animal life.
Definition of a Major Incident
Although the Civil Contingencies Act 2004 uses the term emergencies, the
definition of a major incident is still relevant since it is used by the emergency
services. It is defined as: -
“any event, happening with or without advance warning, causing death or
injury, damage to property or the environment, or disruption to the community,
which because of the scale of its effects, cannot be dealt with by the
emergency services and the local authorities as part of their day-to-day
responsibilities”.
A major incident is any emergency that requires the implementation of special
arrangements by one or all of the Emergency Services, the NHS or the local
authority for:-
the rescue, treatment and transportation of a large number of
casualties,
the involvement either directly or indirectly of large numbers of people,
the handling of a large number of enquiries likely to be generated both
from the public and the news media, usually addressed to the police,
the need for the large scale combined resources of two or more of the
emergency services,
the mobilisation and organisation of the emergency services and
supporting services, e.g. local authority, to cater for the threat of death,
serious injury or homelessness to a large number of people.
Harlow’s duties in Emergency Planning
As a Category 1 responder Harlow Council has statutory duties under the Civil
Contingencies Act 2004 and they are, in partnership with others, to: -
• Make risk assessments
• Make business continuity arrangements
• Conduct emergency planning activities
• Inform, warn and advise the public
• Co-operate in resilience activities
• Share information to facilitate resilience
• Promote Business Continuity (Local Authority only)
Emergency Plan and Rest Centre Plan
In order to deal with an incident which falls outside the normal day to day
business of Harlow Council we have produced an Emergency Response Plan
which outlines the procedures that we will initiate during an emergency.
Should the incident involve displaced residents or survivors that are
temporarily homeless the Council has identified several premises within
Harlow that can be used as temporary Rest Centres. It has also written a
Rest Centre Plan identifying a designated Rest Centre that will be used in the
vast majority of incidents.
Both the plans are regularly exercised and tested to ensure that the
procedures are sound and that our staff are fully trained to deal with any
incident as efficiently and safely as possible.
District Council Responsibilities
The Chief Executive will be responsible for ensuring the maintenance of those
essential services normally provided by the Local Authority, the co-ordination
of the activities of the various Departments, statutory undertakings, the
voluntary organisations involved and the provision of assistance to persons in
distress.
Harlow Council – Role in an emergency
To provide, as far as possible, those services for which it is
normally responsible.
To accommodate those rendered homeless by an incident. (This
may include establishing and managing a Rest Centre or arranging
alternative accommodation).
To assist Essex Police in the establishment of Survivor Reception
Centres, Rest Centres and Friends and Relatives Reception
Centres.
To help co-ordinate the efforts of the voluntary organisations, in
consultation with Essex County Council.
To provide an information service for the public and the media in
consultation with other partners involved.
To give mutual assistance to adjoining District Councils where
possible.
To provide support and assistance to the emergency services.
To liaise with utility companies, ensuring that disruption of services
are kept to an absolute minimum.
To ensure that the recovery phase is planned for at an early stage
of the incident in order that „life as normal‟ can be resumed at the
earliest opportunity.
Essex County Council Responsibilities (If applicable)
Local Government within Essex is delivered, with the exception of unitary
authorities of Southend and Thurrock, through a two-tier system of county and
district/borough.
In a major emergency it is likely that the level of services and resources
required by a District Council will involve the County in a supporting role. This
could include providing suitable premises for Rest Centres, provision of
welfare services, transportation, additional manpower etc.
In the event of an incident effecting more than one of the District/Boroughs in
the County, or neighbouring Counties, the County Council would assume a
lead role in co-ordinating the response and prioritising resources.
If appropriate a Crisis Management Team will be convened to provide an
integrated emergency management response to the emergency. The Team
will consist of the Chief Executive (or his representative), Officers from the
appropriate Service areas, Liaison Officers from the affected District/Borough;
public utilities and voluntary organisations.
It will meet either within the Emergency Response Centre at County Hall,
Chelmsford, or if for some reason this was denied them the Emergency
Response Centres at either Chelmsford or Castle Point Borough Councils, to
enable an effective co-ordination of action between all services involved.
Initial contact with all the County Directorates and their resources can be
made through the Essex Emergency Plans Duty Officer System.
Emergency Plans Unit
The Emergency Plans Unit, through its 24 hour Duty Officer System,
provides an initial contact with the necessary county services, public
utilities, voluntary organisations and government agencies. It is
available to respond to request for assistance from district authorities
and the emergency services. If appropriate the Duty Officer will:
Implement the local authority response in relation to specific plans
for Nuclear/Industrial Incidents, Pipelines, Fluvial Flooding, Rabies
etc. and if required, a Temporary Mortuary;
Liaise with Directorates within the County Council who have specific
responsibilities in an emergency to activate specific Plans for
providing Transport; Media and Humanitarian Support;
Activate the County Emergency Response Centre to providing
effective co-ordination of all organisation involved in the response;
Liaise with the emergency services and public utilities;
Provide a Liaison Officer to Essex Police Headquarters – Gold;
Arrange for additional communications to be provided at specific
locations i.e. Rest Centres;
Activate the provision of county held resources including beds and
bedding;
Provide information on the availability of specialist equipment from
the Resources Database.
Partner Agencies
Harlow Council will work with a number of partner agencies during an
emergency and a brief overview of their responsibilities follows: -
Essex Police
The county of Essex and the unitary authorities of Southend and
Thurrock are policed by Essex Police, under the command of the Chief
Constable whose headquarters are located in Springfield, Chelmsford.
Harlow District comes under the operational control of Harlow Division
who will provide the initial response to an incident and assume the
overall control and co-ordination at the scene (Silver/Bronze). If the
incident were of sufficient magnitude to require resources beyond
those available at Divisional level then Force Headquarters would
assume a strategic role (Gold).
The police‟s responsibilities, depending upon the type and severity of
the incident, are:
Saving life, in conjunction with the other emergency services;
Co-ordination of the emergency services, local authorities, media
and other organisations acting in support at the scene of an
incident;
Policing the inner and outer cordon; including establishing the right
of access and egress in conjunction with the other emergency
services and controlling traffic;
Preserving evidence at the scene of a crime or suspected scene of
crime;
Identifying and safeguarding property;
Media management at the scene;
Establishing a Rendezvous Vehicle Point (RVP) for responding
agencies;
Establish a Forward Control Point in conjunction with all other
agencies responding to the incident, using the Bronze, Silver and
Gold Command Structure;
Establishing and maintaining communications and liaison links with
responding agencies;
Disseminating appropriate information to the relevant agencies
relating to the ongoing response;
Implementing evacuation procedures and/or warning the public;
Requesting Rest Centre/ Survivor Reception/ Friends and Relatives
Centres to be set up and, if required, providing police liaison to
these establishments;
Establishing a Casualty Information Bureau and publishing, via the
media, telephone numbers for the general public to contact;
In the event of fatalities and/or serious injury establishing the
identification of those involved and notifying their friends and/or
relatives;
Providing liaison officers to Hospitals being used to treat the injured;
At the request of the Coroner, instigate, in liaison with Local
Authority Environmental Health Officers, the setting up of body
holding areas and the provision, in liaison with Essex County
Council Emergency Plans, of a Temporary Mortuary facility;
Establishing a Media Centre, arranging press briefings and co-
ordinating media statements including the control of press access to
the incident site and to any Rest / Survivor Reception Centres and
Friends and Relatives Centres.
Essex Fire and Rescue Service
Essex Fire and Rescue Service undertake the primary responsibility for
all fire fighting; chemical; pollution; flooding incidents and rescue
operations which, depending upon the type and severity of the incident
would include:
In the event of a major fire to assume control of the incident;
The extrication and rescue of trapped casualties from road traffic
incidents or any other serious non-road transport incident;
Mass decontamination of the public following a CBRN incident;
Prevention of further escalation of an incident, by tackling fires,
dealing with released chemicals and other hazardous situations;
The gathering of information and hazard assessment to give to the
police on the need to evacuate members of the public;
Liaison with the Police regarding the establishment of an inner
cordon and subsequent control of that inner cordon;
The safety of all personnel involved in rescue work. Including
ensuring that all non-Fire Service personnel entering the inner
cordon are aware of and conform to Fire Service safety procedures
and, in particular the use of the evacuation system and nominal roll
procedures;
Ensure reasonable steps are taken to prevent or limit serious harm
to the environment;
To undertake a search and rescue function where there is a
potential for persons to be trapped. Examples of such incidents may
be, landslides, collapsed structures following gas explosions or
terrorist attack;
Assistance and rescue of those persons trapped by large scale
flooding where there is a serious risk to human health and welfare;
Liaison with the Medical Incident Officer [ambulance], Police
Incident Officer and other agencies, as appropriate;
Participation in investigations and preparation of reports with
supporting evidence for subsequent inquiries;
Ensure operational cover is maintained within the county during
Major Incidents. This may be achieved by requesting another Fire
Rescue Authority to respond outside its own area when reasonable
to do so;
Standing by during the non-emergency, recovery phase as
appropriate.
East of England Ambulance Trust
The East of England Ambulance Trust covers the areas of
Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Norfolk and
Suffolk. The service has the overall control of the medical response to
an incident, which depending on the type and severity, could include:
Alerting receiving hospitals and call out of BASICS Doctors;
Transporting casualties to the appropriate hospitals;
Implementing procedures to deal with decontamination of the public
at the scene;
Identifying in liaison with the Fire Service and undertaking the
decontamination of casualties at the scene;
Establishing a Forward Control Point and appointing a Medical
Incident Officer;
Assessing the number and condition of casualties and operate a
TRIAGE casualty channelling system;
Establishing an Ambulance park and loading point;
Activating the appropriate Voluntary Agencies i.e. Red Cross and St
John Ambulance to providing additional resources;
Providing, in liaison with the Police and other responding agencies,
information to the media on the Ambulance Services‟ response to
the incident.
Acute Trusts (Hospital Service)
The term Acute Trust is used to cover both NHS Trusts and
Foundation Trusts. These are hospitals that have Accident and
Emergency Departments. The outline responsibilities of the Trusts
are:
Provide a safe and secure environment for the assessment and
treatment of patients;
Provide a safe and secure environment for staff that will ensure the
health, safety and welfare of staff;
Provide a clinical response including provision of general support
and specific/specialist health care to all casualties, and victims and
responders;
Liaise with the ambulance service, SHA, local PCT‟s, (including
GPs, out-of-hours services, Minor Injury Units and other primary
care providers), other hospitals, independent sector providers, and
other agencies in order to manage the impact of the incident;
Ensure there is an operational response to provide at scene
medical cover using, for example, BASICS (British Association for
Immediate Care Schemes) and other immediate care teams where
they exist. Members of these teams will be trained to an appropriate
standard. The Medical Incident Commander should not routinely be
taken from the receiving hospital so as not to deplete resources;
Ensure that the hospital reviews all its essential functions
throughout the incident;
Support to any designated receiving hospital that is substantially
affected including provision of effective support to any neighbouring
service;
Provide limited decontamination facilities and personal protective
equipment to manage contaminated self presenting casualties;
Liaise with activated health emergency control centres and/or on
call SHA/PCT Officers as appropriate;
Maintain communications with relatives and friends of existing
patients and those from the incident, the Casualty Bureau, the local
community, the media and VIPs.
NHS East of England Strategic Health Authority (SHA)
The East of England Strategic Health Authority has two major roles in
preparing and responding to major incidents:
Performance management of NHS organisations
To ensure that local plans are consistent with NHS major incident
planning guidance and other relevant legislation and guidance;
Taking Strategic command and control of widespread major
incidents
Incidents that cannot be contained within the resources of a local
health economy.
Outline responsibilities of The East of England Strategic Health
Authority include:
Make provision for a 24 hour a day emergency response;
Coordinate the local NHS response;
Coordinate the public health, including health protection,
response locally;
Assess the ongoing situation and identify emerging issues;
Maintain links with NHS Direct locally;
Provide resources to support the local effort using mutual aid
either locally or regionally;
Liaise with the DH to support the local effort using mutual aid
nationally or internationally;
Liaise with the DH to support response elsewhere regionally,
nationally or internationally;
Support screening, epidemiology and long term assessment
and management of the effects of an incident;
Liaise directly with the NHS delivery representative at the
Strategic Coordinating Group (SCG);
Liaise directly with the PCT Emergency Control Rooms;
Act as a conduit for information and instructions to the local
NHS and the SCG;
Act as the co-ordination point for health media strategy for the
NHS;
Act as a health focal point for liaison with other agencies and
organisations.
Primary Care Trusts (PCT’s)
PCT‟s in Essex are currently going through a re-structuring which
will see a reduction in the number of PCT‟s from 13 to 5. As from
the 1st. October 2007 Harlow will come under the West Essex PCT
along with Epping and Uttlesford.
Outline responsibilities of Primary Care Trusts include:
Coordinate the NHS response to a major incident at PCO level;
Provide a 24 hour emergency management and clinical
response;
Coordinate the primary care, community and mental health
response;
Provide appropriate clinical settings for the treatment of people
with minor injuries and conditions such as reception centres,
minor injury centres, walk in centres, community hospitals and
general practice;
Provide care and advice to evacuees, survivors and relatives,
including replacement medication;
Assist acute trusts by providing staff where appropriate and
supporting accelerated discharge;
Coordinate community hospital bed capacity in liaison with local
acute hospitals and any available local bed management
system;
Liaise with local authorities;
Assess the effects of an incident on vulnerable care groups,
such as children, dialysis patients, elderly, medically dependent,
or physically or mentally disabled;
Establish with local authorities facilities for mass distribution of
countermeasures; for example, vaccinations and antibiotics;
Administration of medications, prophylactics, vaccines and
counter measures;
Provide support, advice and leadership to the local community
on health aspects of an incident;
Support screening, epidemiology and long term assessment and
management of the effects of an incident;
Provide psychological and mental health support to staff,
patients and relatives in conjunction with the appropriate
provider;
Proactively communicate information to all PCT staff and ensure
relevant guidance and advice is available, including private
facilities where appropriate;
Continue to provide core business services;
Maintain liaison with and co-ordinate the response with the
Strategic Health Authority;
Work with the local authority and community to support the
recovery phase;
Assess the medium term impact on the community and priorities
for the restoration of normality;
Consider the need for long term monitoring;
Preserve all plans and documentation used or produced during
the course of the emergency response;
Prepare a post-incident report for consolidation in the NHS
report to be forwarded to the PCT Board, the SHA and other
interested organizations.
Voluntary Organisations
There are many local voluntary agencies within Essex who provide
a valuable service to the community by having members trained in
various aspects of emergency response. Contact arrangements
and details of the assistance they can provide is contained in the
Essex Voluntary Forum Directory produced by County Emergency
Plans. In the first instance contact and call-out should always be
made through the County Emergency Plans Duty Officer.
Casualty Bureaux
In an incident involving a large number of casualties the Police will
set up and man a Casualty Bureau. The location and telephone
number of the Casualty Bureau will be given the widest publicity via
the media.
Health and Safety
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is responsible for enforcing
regulations and investigating industrial accidents involving
hazardous substances. In an emergency HSE inspectors and
scientists would be available to provide technical advice to mitigate
the effects of an accident.