Failure to Plan is a Plan to Fail

Tornado sirens go off, I grab the two cats and dog, my wife clears the closet under the stairs, my daughter grabs the snacks and we take cover in our household’s severe weather assembly location. We all have our designated duties; we all know what to do and where to be when the order is issued. We have practiced many times, mainly because the tornado sirens have sounded fairly frequently these past couple of years. Each time we revise our plan and duties to improve our preparedness.
 
The recent severe weather and tornado touchdown in north Georgia reminds all of us that we need to Plan, Prepare and Practice. Families and businesses can do much to prepare for the impact of the hazards we potentially face in today’s world. Having an emergency action plan that addresses emergencies is one of the best ways an employer can protect its employees and property.
 
The Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) requires businesses to develop emergency action plans to address potential emergency situations, both natural and man-made, at their sites. A well-developed emergency action plan will facilitate employer and employee actions during emergencies. Examples of common emergency scenarios are severe weather, fire, explosion, medical emergency, chemical spills, terrorism, etc. Emergency action plans can come in all shapes and sizes based on evaluation of various site specific factors, however the basic components of an emergency action plan typically include: means for reporting fires and emergencies, evacuation or severe weather procedures and emergency escape route assignments, procedures to be followed by employees who remain to operate critical facility operations before they evacuate, procedures to account for all employees after an emergency evacuation or shelter in place has been completed, rescue and medical duties for those employees who are to perform them, facility and outside service contacts, communication methods, an evacuation map, etc. Evacuation maps should identify exits, fire extinguishers locations, eyewash locations, spill kits, evacuation routes and assembly areas. All of this information is very important for an effective plan.
 
Communication and training is a vital component to an effective emergency response plan to ensure employees understand their roles and responsibilities within the site’s plan. Just as my wife, daughter and I are aware of each of our roles in our house, this information didn’t come to us without making a conscious effort to sit down and talk about it. The same thing goes for businesses. Your employees are not going to know what to do unless they are specifically trained on it. Having a weather radio at a facility does no good unless someone has been designated and trained to use it. Employers need to plan for continuous training and practice. Effective plans call for training to be conducted initially, when roles change, when procedures change, or annually. The training scope should include: roles and responsibilities, threats and hazards, notification procedures, emergency response procedures, evacuation and shelter locations, accountability procedures, facility emergency equipment, and if applicable shutdown procedures.
 
There is a long history of emergency incidents which provide examples of plans that worked and plans that failed (Adairsville, Lowes in Sanford NC, Chernobyl, Three Mile Island, Deepwater Horizon). In light of the recent severe weather and the upcoming storm season it important for all of us to revisit our emergency action plans at home and at the workplace.
 
The quote in the title is a restating of quotes by Benjamin Franklin and Winston Churchill but the point is clear; failing to plan for an event such as an emergency is setting yourself up for failure. With some planning, preparation and execution we can all be an example of a plan that works.
 
Article by Tomas Motiejunas of Orizon I.P.E.
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