In this post we’re going to try and analyse the two most critical information processes during emergencies: becoming aware of the hazard and successfully notifying persons in danger. The idea is to represent in a graphic fashion the different communication streams and analyse the strengths and weaknesses of each setup. We've prepared four diagrams, have a look: Figure 1. Communication paths in four scenarios The basics First, let’s analyse the most basic situation, depicted in … [Read more...] about Alarm broadcast process: four scenarios
Evacuation procedures: What to consider
Hello! In this post we are going to present some information that needs to be considered when putting together an evacuation procedure. We hope you like it! Australian Standard 'AS 3745 – Planning for Emergencies in Facilities' defines evacuation as the orderly movement of people from a place of danger. According to the Cambridge English Dictionary, evacuate means to move people from a dangerous place to somewhere safe. We prefer the second definition because it includes the … [Read more...] about Evacuation procedures: What to consider
Case study: school
Hi there! Do you work in a school? In this post we are going to explain what emergency app settings we recommend you to use. It won't take long. But before we start, let's go over the basics: Anybody can download and install the EVA Emergency app in their phones. Only back-end registered users can log in. When they log in, they get extra functionalities. A registered user is a record in the back-end database that includes name, phone number and role for a particular site. … [Read more...] about Case study: school
Emergency Drill Frequency (2 of 2)
In our previous post we explained how most safety professionals consider quarterly emergency drills a reasonable frequency (on average, every site is different of course!) Australian Standard AS 3745—2010 ‘Planning for emergencies in facilities’ states that: The size and configuration of the facility, together with the type of occupancy, will determine the type and time interval between emergency response exercises. These may be conducted either as partial emergency response exercises or … [Read more...] about Emergency Drill Frequency (2 of 2)
Complacency: how to address it
‘Complacency’: self-satisfaction, especially when accompanied by unawareness of actual dangers of deficiencies (Merriam Webster dictionary). When applied to safety in the workplace, it’s probably more relevant to define it as the workers numbed perception of risk through habit and after a long period free from incidents. Complacency ultimately causes workers to lower their guard and cut corners affecting their safety and that of their peers. There are two key characteristics that I believe … [Read more...] about Complacency: how to address it