Frequently Asked Questions:

							                              Current Situation

What is a Major Emergency?
A major emergency is an incident, which, usually with little or no warning,
causes or threatens, death or injury, serious disruption of essential services or
damage to property, the environment or infrastructure beyond the normal
capabilities of the principal emergency services (An Garda Síochána, the
Ambulance Service and the Fire Service) in the area in which the event
occurs.

Major emergencies require the implementation of special arrangements and
the mobilisation of additional resources by the principal response agencies
(An Garda Síochána, the HSE and the local authorities) to ensure an
effective, co-ordinated response.

Who are the Principal Emergency Services (PES)?
The principal emergency services are the blue light services that respond to
normal emergencies in Ireland, namely An Garda Síochána, the Ambulance
Service and the Fire Service. A fourth principal emergency service, the Irish
Coast Guard, is responsible for the initiation, control and co-ordination of
maritime emergencies in the Irish territorial waters, harbours and coastline.
The principal emergency services would be the first services to respond to
most major emergencies.

Who are the Principal Response Agencies (PRA)?
The principal response agencies are the agencies designated by the
Government to respond to Major Emergencies i.e. An Garda Síochána, the
Health Service Executive and the Local Authorities. Each principal
emergency service is part of a larger principal response agency e.g. the Fire
Service is a Local Authority service. Due to the nature and complexity of
Major Emergencies the staff and resources of the wider agency is required to
support the work of the emergency services.

Who may declare a major emergency?
Any one of the principal response agencies may declare a major emergency.
The highest-ranking member of each of the first emergency teams to arrive on
site carries out a situation appraisal. It is the task of these individuals to
survey the site and accumulate all available information that may be used to
arrive at a decision. Each principal response agency has personnel
authorised and trained in the procedures for declaring a major emergency.

What agencies respond to major emergency situations?
An Garda Siochána, the Health Service Executive and the Local Authorities
are the agencies charged with managing the response to emergency
situations. They provide and operate Ireland’s principal emergency services
that respond to emergencies on a daily basis.

Depending on the nature of the emergency, agencies other than the principal
response agencies e.g. the Defence Forces or the Voluntary Emergency
Services may also be required. In these situations the relevant arrangements
outlined in the Major Emergency Plans will be invoked.

No third party should respond to the site of a major emergency unless
mobilised by one of the principal response agencies through the agreed
procedure.

What is the Local Authority Major Emergency Plan?
Major emergencies require special arrangements to ensure co-ordinated and
effective response. Each Local Authority has a Major Emergency Plan that
sets out the specific arrangements for that authority in the event of a major
emergency. Similar plans are in place in An Garda Síochána and the Health
Service Executive. Current plans are based on the 1984 “Framework for Co-
ordinated Response to Major Emergencies”. Major Emergency Plans are
reviewed on a regular basis and exercises are carried out, including joint
exercises with the An Garda Síochána and the HSE.

How do these agencies work together?
The principal emergency services have protocols and procedures in place to
support their work at a range of events, from small routine occurrences to
major emergencies.
                            The New Framework

What is “ A Framework For Major Emergency Management”?
It is an agreed Framework approved by Government enabling An Garda
Siochána, the Health Service Executive and Local Authorities to prepare for
and make a co-ordinated response to major emergencies resulting from
events such as fires, transport accidents, hazardous substances incidents and
severe weather.

This document replaces the Framework for Co-ordinated Response to Major
Emergency, which has underpinned major emergency preparedness and
response capability since 1984. The new Major Emergency Management
arrangements in this document build on current strengths and make full use of
the core competencies and organisational strengths of the principal response
agencies as the basis of any response.

Why do we need a new Framework?
Recent years have seen changes in the international approach to the
preparation for and response to major emergencies. The new Framework
incorporates current international best practice and builds on the good work
that has been ongoing in the principal response agencies since 1984.

What does the new Framework actually do?
The Framework sets out arrangements which will facilitate the principal
emergency services in scaling-up the response required, so as to utilise the
full resources of the principal response agencies, and to work together in the
management of large-scale incidents.

The Framework sets out arrangements by which other services such as the
Defence Forces, voluntary emergency services, utilities, transport companies,
industrial and other participants, and not least the communities affected, can
support and work with the principal response agencies in reacting to and
managing major emergencies.

How does the Framework serve the public?
The Framework is designed primarily to provide for the protection, support
and welfare of the public in times of emergency. Effective arrangements to
ensure public safety in times of emergency also have the benefit of helping to
safeguard the environment, the economy, infrastructure and property.

The Framework aims to ensure we are able to respond to emergencies at the
national, regional and local level, and to make sure that the essential services
(food, water, transport, health, financial services etc.) keep operating.

Are the new Framework arrangements in place?
As part of its decision to approve the new Framework, Government also
approved a two-year development programme referred to as the Major
Emergency Development Programme (2006-2008) or MEDP. The purpose of
this programme is to allow for the structured migration from current
arrangements to an enhanced level of preparedness via the new emergency
management process.
The development and preparation of the new Major Emergency Management
regime was undertaken in the first year of the programme. This entailed such
tasks as putting staff and resources in place, initial training, putting structures
in place, writing up individual agency development programmes, undertaking
risk assessment and writing revised format Major Emergency Plans. In this,
the second year of the programme, the emphasis is on training and
exercising.
Current plans continue to operate until all the principal response agencies are
instructed to change to the new arrangements at the end of September 2008.

Who oversees the roll-out of the Framework?
The Framework defines emergency management structures at Local,
Regional and National Level. At a Local level each principal response agency
is responsible for undertaking the requirements set out in the Framework e.g.
having a Major Emergency Plan.
At Regional Level the principal response agencies have formed Regional
Steering Groups to co-ordinate the inter-agency aspects of major emergency
preparedness and management.
At National Level the National Steering Group is assigned responsibility for
promulgating and promoting the Framework and ensuring its timely and
consistent implementation. The National Steering Group has also formed a
National Working Group to undertake implementation tasks and produce
additional guidance in the area of Major Emergency Management
                 Specific Topics Covered in the Handbook

Flooding
The Office of Public Works have developed two websites www.flooding.ie and
www.floodmaps.ie to provide practical help to homes or businesses that may
be at risk from flooding. The Flooding website contains detailed information on
how to prepare for flooding, how to minimise its effects and it also gives
generally safety advice to be applied in case of flooding. The floodmaps
website shows details of historical data on flooding in Ireland, this website
advises on historical risk of flooding for each area of the country.

Local Authorities for whom flooding is an issue have detailed plans for
response to these events. The advice in relation to climate change would
suggest that flooding will continue to be an issue in this country and indeed its
prevalence may increase. With this in mind the National Working Group has
worked with the Office of Public Works to produce information and guidance
for the principal response agencies and particularly the Local Authorities on
preparing for flood response. This guidance is available on the Department’s
website.

Chemical Spills
Local Authority Fire Services respond to chemical spills in co-ordination with
their colleagues in the other principal emergency services. The fire service is
trained and equipped to deal with what they refer to as ‘Hazardous Material’
or ‘Hazmat’ incidents.
Chemical spills can pose a threat to human health and the environment and
the best advice to the public is as set out in the Government’s Handbook i.e.
stay away form the scene (preferably up hill and up wind of the incident) and
call the emergency services.

Fire
Fire incidents can range from small fires that can be extinguished by a trained
person using a fire extinguisher to large fires that require the attendance of
the fire service.      This Department provides the planning and legislative
framework for the enforcement of fire safety and the operation of the fire
service through the Fire Services Act 1981 and the 2003 amendments. Local
authorities provide fire services either directly themselves or through a mutual
aid agreement with another authority.
Financial assistance is provided to fire authorities via grants towards the cost
of fire stations, the purchase of fire appliances and fire service equipment,
including communications equipment.
Fire safety advice is provided by this Department to fire authorities and
persons in charge of premises in response to queries and requests.
Practical advice for the public on fire safety is also available from the
Department’s Fire Services and Emergency Planning Section. This advice is
available in leaflet form or can be downloaded directly from the website. The
advice leaflets cover the following topics “Fire safety at home”, “Smoke and
heat alarms”, “Fire safety in flats and apartments”, “Fire safety on caravans”
and “Fire safety for older people”.