Crisis Management Plan for Ewood Park - Case Study Example

Ewood Park, Crisis Management Plan (Student Name) (Student Number) (Instructors Name) 23 January 2009 Table of Contents 1.0 Introduction………………………………………………………………..3 2.0 Ewood Park stadium………………………………………………………3 2.1 Structural Design…………………………………………………………..3 2.2 Stadium Use………………………………………………………………..3 3.0 Legislation Control…………………………………………………………4 4.0 Stadium Crisis Management………………………………………………..4 4.1 Structure Command………………………………………………….5 4.2 Communication and Media ….……………………………………....6 4.3 Liaison Management ………………………………………………...7 4.4 Stakeholder Agencies………………………………………………..8 4.5 Evacuation……………………………………………………………9 4.6 Medical Approach……………………………………………………10 5.0 Decontamination Plan…….…………………………………………………10 6.0 Training of Staff……………………………………………………………..10 7.0 Recovery and Reconstruction………………………………………………..11 8.0 Conclusion…………………………………………………………………...11 9.0 Recommendations……………………………………………………………11 10.0 Bibliography……………………………………………………………….13 1.0 Introduction Emergency cases are continuously increasing in the world in the 21st century. The emergencies range from minor incidents such as power failure to major catastrophes such bomb blast. Terrorists’ attacks are tremendously increasing thus putting every government alert to protect the lives and property of its people. Most public places therefore have developed appropriate emergency plans to deal with emergency issues regardless of their nature. Ewood Park Stadium has not been left behind in developing a sustainable emergency plan, which will be analysed in this paper. The analysis will help to determine the effectiveness of this plan and recommendations will later me made at the end of the paper to help in making necessary changes for Ewood Park Stadium emergency plan. 2.0 Ewood Park Stadium 2.1 Structural Design The Stadium is located at Ewood Park, Nuttall Street, Blackburn. An all seater stadium has a capacity of 31,154. The Stadium is divided into four major stands including three two tier stands and a single tier stand. The two tier stands include The Darwen End Stand, Black Burn End Stand and The Jack Walker Stand. The CIS Stand is the fourth single tier stand. The three main stands (two tier stands) are equipped with corporate facilities. Blue Café Bar is located at the Blackburn End Stand while a retail shop is located off the stands. 2.2 Stadium Use Constructed in 1882, Ewood Park Stadium is used by Blackburn Rovers Football Club as their football pitch. In the recent past, the stadium has been used for various international sporting activities such as Women’s Euro of 2005 where three matches were held. The stadium is fully equipped with necessary facilities which make it possible for events to be carried during both the day and night. It is a modern stadium so to say. 3.0 Legislation Control The United Kingdom Government has various legislations evaluated to manage and maintain safety in the country. Some of the legislations are applicable within EU. The Health and Safety Executive plays a major role in safety regulations for work place and public places in the U.K. The following legislations play a major role in maintaining safety in Blackburn Rovers Stadium; General Safety Certificate Safety at Sports Ground Act of 1975 Guide to Safety at Sports Ground Club Fire Policy Fire Service Inspectorate 2002 This legislation is important as they put into consideration various components that are require for safety to be achieved in the stadium. Some of the important provisions included in these legislations include, adequate structural design, fire escapes, gangways and crash barriers. The provisions are important in ensuring emergency incidents are handled with ease. The safety and Sports Act of 1975 ensures that the stadiums is structurally designed with consideration for the disabled to have easy access to the stadium and are given priority during emergencies. Ewood Park Stadium applies this legislations to ensure that safety is maintained in the stadium for the players and spectators. 4.0 Crisis Management Plan The stadium is a sports ground for Blackburn Rovers Football club and Athletics frequently hosts people including VIPs during matches. Just like any other public place, a stadium is prone to many emergency incidents. Black Rovers Stadium has put in place a crisis management plan to see that risks of loss of lives, injuries and destruction are minimized in an occurrence of an emergency (Brown, 2006). The crisis that may occur in the stadium are numerous and unpredictable. The Blackburn Rovers Club contingency plan has been designed to ensure that emergencies of all nature are taken care of including minor crisis such as power failure and catastrophic emergencies such as bombs. The stewards in the stadium have various ways and paraphernalia developed to deal with crisis of all types. The stands are designed to carry a certain capacity, which prevents overloading hence reducing the chances for some accidents. Fire risks are properly dealt with in the stadium (Tarlow, 2002). The plan has put in place sprinkler systems and fire alarms within the stadium, which puts all risks related to fire under control. Various stadium officers and stewards plays a major role in accessing the stadium’s safety and in case of an emergency they communicate to the Safety Officer in charge through the use of radio system or phone thus increasing efficiency of dealing with emergency. The stadium has well located CCTV cameras, which are used to monitor any events both inside and outside the stadium that may be suspicious. The Blackburn Rovers contingency plan therefore puts into consideration all the factors mentioned in the assignment brief. 4.1 Structural Command during Incident (Major) The emergency response team in Ewood Park Stadium uses a systematic structural command similar to that applied in Incident Command (IC). Generally, the Nominated Safety Officer in the stadium is responsible management and control of an emergency. In presence of a Police Commander, the Safety Commander works together with the PC who may also take total command in according to an agreement stipulated in the Statement of Intent (Christina, 2007). The Deputy Safety Officer is in charge of ensuring that the other crewmembers are in place ready for their duties. The Chief Steward on the other hand works together with the Safety Officer in evacuation process and monitors the stewards. The Assistant Chief Steward does the evacuation of the VIPs such as club managers, directors and guests. In case of injuries, the Assistant Chief Steward is responsible for receiving casualties and liaising with the next of kin of the casualties through the phone. Perimeter Track Supervisors manages the perimeter track and monitors the entire evacuation process. The supervisor makes sure that all the perimeter gates are open. All the procedure for coordination of events or information in an emergency between the stadium steward and safety team and the police are stipulated in this document, Statement of Intent (Haddow and Bullock, 2007). 4.2 Communication and Media Communication is very important during an emergency. The way information is passed during a major incident can facilitate or hinder the process of evacuation (Tarlow, 2002). The Blackburn Rovers Contingency Plan stipulates that information to be passed discreetly in order to avoid panic from both the players and spectators. There is a well-developed communication system in the Stadium, which includes emergency telephones usually 999, radio system with five channels, public address system as well as loudhailers that are used as a last result when other systems fail. First, information is passed to the safety officer who coordinates with the stewards. This is done to ensure that the safety team can be able to handle the crowd in a systematic manner. In case of fire incidents, there are automatic fire alarms, which automatically initiate the evacuation process through automated opening of the gates and doors. However, in Blackburn Stadium, the alarms are turned off and are operated manually to avoid unnecessary panic. The media also plays an important role in times of emergency. The stadium should be also available to provide the media with valid news because the media can give contradicting news. CCTV cameras in the stadium are also useful in monitoring events inside and outside the stadium, which can be useful for the evacuation process. The cameras are also used for recording sequence of events during an emergency. 4.3 Liaison Management Emergency requires the management to coordinate with other bodies inside and outside the stadium. Medical attention may require a back up in case of excess or serious injuries, which cannot be handled by the spectator doctor. 999 emergency calls are used together with radio broadcast to ensure that the local authorities and the police are informed of the incident on time. The management may also liaison with fire department to help in the rescue and evacuation process should there be a major catastrophe. Bomb and CBRN are dangerous and thus the management through the Safety Officer and the Police Commander may require contacting experts to come and assist in such a case. Liaison is useful in contacting the next of kin of the injured spectators. 4.4 Stakeholder Agencies Multi-agency stakeholders are required in an emergency to provide the management crew with back up. The Ewood Park Stadium has a good coordination with other agencies such as the Lancashire County Ambulance services, which are ready to lend a hand in case of major incidents. The Safety Officer through 999 or through the radio can contact these agencies. The fire services are also part of the multi agents that help in bringing fire situation under control (Christina, 2007). Since the stadium does not have a well developed fire fighting equipment except for sprinklers, the fire agency useful as they provide a back up. The police are required to control and offer security to the people in case of an emergency. The police assist in management of the situation, which at times may be out of hand of the stadium safety crew. The police are also useful in investigations during and after the incident. The Local Authority provides the stadium with paramedics ambulances which take casualties to hospital as the emergency ambulance present in the stadium is strictly for use within the stadium unless otherwise. Besides there are other voluntary agencies such as the Red Cross and St. Johns Ambulance which must be contacted to offer their assistance at times of emergencies. Multi agencies therefore are very important in the mitigation and evacuation process of a major incident (Haddow and Bullock, 2007). 4.5 Evacuation Process In an occurrence of a major incident, evacuation is the most critical decision of mitigating losses that may arise from a disaster. Evacuation in the stadium is mainly of two types, total evacuation and partial evacuation. Total evacuation is the evacuation that involve the whole stadium while partial evacuation involve a certain parts or part of the stadium for example a single stand that has been affected. Nevertheless, the decision to evacuate affects all the spectators and the and the players. The Blackburn Rovers Contingency Plan supports both types of evacuations. The club manager decides on when evacuation will take place after coordinating with the Safety Officer and the Police Commander as stipulated in the Statement of Intent. Evacuation process is a complex situation and is determined by the nature of the incident, its seriousness as well as the location of the event causing the situation (Douglas, 2001). This will be governed through a dynamic risk assessment plan designed by Blackburn Rovers Club as well as government legislations in place. The emergency exit gates are remotely controlled from a control room located at the CIS stand. The gates use electromagnetic mechanism supplied by a high power voltage source in the stadium. The gates come handy with batteries that supply them with power in case of power failure. Stewards may be required to override the gates if need be to manage the gates. In some cases, the evacuation may involve the spectators passing through the pitch for safety. This is referred to as ground evacuation and it requires the removal of some parts of the pitch. The contingency plan also adheres to the various legislations as it puts into consideration the evacuation of people who are physically challenged. In an emergency, the disabled persons are given the first priority to evacuation and they use the nearest exits available. 4.6 Medical Approach The club has a well-defined attention is well considered in the plan. A spectator doctors moves around with the help of a steward, in the various stands and can provide medical assistant to the spectators. The doctor can easily communicate to the Safety Officer through an emergency phone. There is a first aid rooms in every stand except for the CIS stand, which the doctor can access and carry out his activities (Fredrick, 2003). Voluntary services by St. John’s Ambulance and the Red Cross provide a back up for the doctor. The Lancaster Local Authority also provides an ambulance that is used to ferry casualties to the hospital. 5.0 Decontamination Plan The Blackburn Rovers Club has no any specific plan for decontamination. Leaking gas can come from the outside (due to the influence of wind) or from inside, valves have been put in place to control such events even though there are no measures that can be used to contain the gas (Cecelia et al, 2006). The only thing that the Safety Officer can do to combat the mess is to contact the supplier company to cut the supply. 6.0 Training of Staff The plan has no any defined training of its staff in handling of emergency crisis. Training is a key element in mitigation of accidents and incidents in any public place (Brown, 2006). The plan only focuses on dealing with emergencies rather than control. 7.0 Recovery and Reconstruction There are no formalised arrangements for the club to transfer part or all of its business to an alternative site in the event of an incident. The Chairman, Board of Directors, the Chief Executive and the Club Secretary have addressed this problem to the management board though no actions have been taken so far. 8.0 Conclusion The Blackburn Rovers Stadium has is large and accommodates a big number of audience. The stadium is used for sporting activities and is home ground for Blackburn Rovers Football Club. The management has a well-developed contingency plan to cater for all types of emergency crisis that may occur. Besides, there are various legislations to ensure that the spectators and players are safe in case of an incident. This plan caters for both minor and major catastrophes. The various personnel are well coordinated and they liaison with multi-agencies such as Local Authority to help in containing an emergency. 9.0 Recommendations The Contingency Plan of the Ewood Park Stadium has catered for most of the things that are required in crisis management. However, the contingency plan of the Club fails to address important aspects in crisis management. The club should lay stipulate ways by which the detoxification process can be carried out as terrorism attacks can be of various types. The club also needs to introduce training programmes as well as refresher courses for its stewards and staff in general as this can be an important move in crisis management. Actions should be taken to develop a reconstruction and recovery program in an emergency. The plan also does not have any special arrangements for handling the deceased in case of serious catastrophes causing death. This should be addressed by putting in place a special ambulance that can be used in evacuation of the corps. 10.0 Bibliography Blackburn Rovers Club, Contingency Plan: Ewood Park Blackburn, London. Brown, S. (2006), Sports and Safety: Crisis Management Plan, (London, Oxford University Press) Christina, M. (2007), The Essence of Management Plan, (London, McMillan) Cecelia, W. et al, (2006), Fire Management in the Stadium, (London, Kinetic House Publishers) Douglas K. (2001), Sports Safety and Legislations, (London, Rutledge) Fredrick, M. (2003), Crisis Management: HSE Perspective, (London, Sage). Howard, F. (2004), Events Risks Management and Safety, (Michigan, Michigan University Press) Haddow, G. and Bullock, J. (2007), Introduction to Emergency management 3rd Ed, (London, Heinemann) Katherine, M. (2005), Terrorism Threats in Sports: Management, (New York, Penguin) Patel, C. (2000), Crises Management in the 21st Century, (New York, Prentice Hall) Parks, J. & Quarterman, J., 2007, Contemporary Sport Management, 3rd ed., (London, Human Kinetics Publishers). Tarlow, P., 2002, Event Risk Management and Safety, (New York, John Wiley and Sons Publishers). Read More