Ingenuity-Summer-2017

14 Pond | www.pondco.com A ccording to OSHA 29 CFR 1910.30 an employer must have an emergency action plan whenever an OSHA standard in this part requires one. In addition, the emergency action plan must be in writing, kept in the workplace, and available to employees for review. This directive is further supported by OSHA requiring employers to provide a workplace free of recognized hazards. There are many examples of manmade and natural workplace emergencies that we can anticipate: „ „ Floods „ „ Hurricanes „ „ Tornadoes „ „ Fires „ „ Toxic gas releases „ „ Chemical spills „ „ Radiological accidents „ „ Explosion „ „ Active shooter events When developing your emergency action plan, conduct a thorough review of the potential emergencies that could occur in your workplace following a job safety analysis approach. Once the plan has been developed, practice the following to ensure consistency and accuracy of your response: „ „ What is the method for reporting the emergency? „ „ What are the emergency route locations? „ „ Who is the emergency coordinator? „ „ Where are the assembly points? „ „ Who will provide rescue and medical duties? „ „ Other relevant duties and responsibilities Planning for these events are well documented and offer a variety of realistic solutions that will minimize impact to your organization and employees. The Unthinkable: An Active Shooter An active shooter event will probably take more time to plan due to the complexity and variability of the situation(s). Each employee should visualize what they would do in situations where an active shooter might suddenly intrude into the Developing Realistic Emergency Action Plans Nobody wants an emergency or disaster to occur, yet they can and will strike anyone, anytime, and anywhere, often without much warning, resulting in millions of lost revenues, employee injuries, and fractured client relationships. When developing your emergency action plan, conduct a thorough review of the potential emergencies that could occur in your workplace following a job safety analysis approach.