Safety Scene Fall 2019 | Page 7

All three of these examples have come across my desk in the past two years, but they are by no means the only ones. So, how do we prepare for all emergencies? As Eric Stuart said in his article: “What you have to do is plan to deal with reasonably foreseeable emergencies.” As a result, I have now begun looking at the art of emergency preparedness differently. Encourage positive outcomes! • Start looking at the results of a drill or incident in a different light. Instead of asking, “Did they follow the plan?” ask, “Did everyone get out safely?”. • Getting everyone out safely is the desired outcome. Just because it didn’t follow the designed plan, doesn’t mean it wasn’t effective. Learn from it. • Welcome input and reporting. Any insights to safety should be encouraged and followed-up on. • Being able to think objectively and quickly will save lives as part of your emergency plan. If you would like some assistance with your emergency preparedness program, contact the Actsafe team to arrange a visit, or sign-up for our Peer Safety Inspection Program and we can walk you through scenarios and offer ideas and resources to help you improve your safety game! Resource Plan! • Review your emergency preparedness plan annually but through different lenses; for example, as a patron, as a volunteer, or in different conditions. Does rain, snow, or a storm change your plan? • Run drills as required, but also run scenarios. Pretend an exit is blocked, the hallway is flooded, or the streets are full of zombies! What should you do? • Involve the front-line staff in the plan. After all, they are the ones that have to execute the plan and they will also have solutions. • Look for new hazards or obstacles on a regular basis. The city changing intersections or traffic patterns can affect your evacuation routes or the ability for emergency services to reach you. Construction on your site often impacts emergency plans. Fall 2019 Edition: Emergency Preparedness Safety Scene 5