Disaster Management and Emergency Planning - Essay Example

Disaster Management and Emergency Planning Introduction Sometimes unexpected disaster of huge magnitude occurs which requires strategic emergency planning to attend to various needs of the casualties, as in the situation of the case study in this report. This is a serious scenario when a raid was conducted on a house in the Green Area of Skelmersdale which yields all convincing evidence that the house has been used by a purported group of terrorists well versed in the knowledge of chemical weapon and aviation, especially in the use of hand-gliders. And the bizarre reports arriving from several quarters confirmed that a small aircraft has indeed been used to spray chemicals along the Promenade along Blackpool, resulting in massive casualties. This report would highlight, in clear terms, the actions expected of the emergency response units: with a great emphasis on how the casualties are attended to; how the public is being warned of the danger of the incident; and how media representatives are properly handled in the course of this catastrophe. The Appropriate Command Structure for Rescue The magnitude of this disaster calls for rapid establishment of an effective command structure. According to the classification of emergencies in UK, this scenario can be categorized as a “serious emergency” (Level 2), because it is a terrorist attack on the welfare of people. In such a situation, a Co-ordinated Combined Government Command Structure (CCGCS) may be necessary to help the casualties. This depends on which section 2 first of all responds to the incident. The UK Central Government, after deliberating on the urgency of the issue may firstly activate Cabinet Office Briefing Room (COBR), chaired by the Prime Minister. Since this incident occurs in the Promenade of Blackpool, which is located in Lancashire, North West of England, the response would be led by the appropriate Lead Government Department in that English Region. Initially, local responders are naturally expected to start the rescue operations: and when this is carried out by the local police led by Police Gold Commander, Strategic Co-ordination Group (SCG) would be activated (which comprises of all the representatives of rescue/ emergency organizations and agencies in that locality). The main guiding principles behind the operations of the Co-ordinated Combined Government Command Structure include preparedness, situation monitoring, continuity, subsidiarity, crisis detection support, containment, communication, integration, response, de-escalation and recovery (Moore & Lakha 2006). The Strategic Co-ordination Group may involve Regional Resilience Team to act as a bridge between the Central Government and the local responders. The local responders require assistance from the Central Government in various ways in order to successfully execute their rescue operations. In the same, Home Office that supervises any terror attack may place a Government Liaison Officer (GLO) at the Gold Commander to inform COBR about the latest developments concerning the rescue activities: the GLO would act as two- 3 way gate to facilitate smooth collaboration and communication between the two entities while working together for the benefits of the people. Responsibilities of the Category One Responders The Category One Responders in this case may be the local police through the activation of English Strategic Co-ordination Group (SCG) led by Police Gold Commander appointed by the local Chief of the Police. According to the UK Law Relating to Emergencies and Disasters (citing The Civil Contingencies Act 2004, in particular), this case is a “serious emergency (Level 2)”, the following responsibilities are expected of the Category One Responders in response to the reports of criminal chemical attacks on the English people enjoying Christmas illuminations along the Promenade at Blackpool (Moore & Lakha 2006: HM Government 2004a). Notably, Strategic Co-ordination Group is the Category One Responder, which is made up of all the representatives of rescue/emergency organizations and agencies in that locality where the chemical attacks occurred. Local Authority Category: The local Authority is automatically expected to be the first responder to any incident of danger or emergency at the local level. The Local Authority is aware of the structure of the locality and can immediately provide rescue operations to casualties before the arrival of the appropriate Lead Government Department (LGD) at the English regional and/or the Strategic Co-ordination Group to be led by the Police Gold Commander. 4 Environmental Agency: As a part of the category one responders, Environmental Agency would arrive at the scene to assess the danger the Chlorine gas may have done to the environment, while estimating the extent of air pollution in order to cordon off dangerous areas from the public. Police: Since the chemical attacks on the people constitute a criminal offence, this fact is enough to compel the local police to activate a rescue operation through England’s Strategic Co-ordination Group (SCG) ably headed by the Police Gold Commander. The police, in addition to other rescue organizations/agencies in SCG would rush to rescue the casualties, while gathering information about the crime committed. Fire and Rescue Service: Chlorine is an inflammable gas: the Fire and Rescue Service would work in conjunction with other agencies on ground to put out any flames the attacks may have sparked, and also rescue some casualties. Ambulance Service: Standby Ambulance Service would be helpful in conveying the casualties from one zone to the other. This is very important because seriously injured people would require prompt hospitalization. Health Protection Agency: UK Health Protection Agency would monitor the effects of the chemical attacks on the public health. Possible investigations may include analyzing the impacts of the chemicals on public health and helping casualties to move to a safer zone or location. 5 Treatment and Identification of Casualties The presence of the first responders outlined above at the scene of the disaster should be able to attend quickly to the casualties, while trying everything possible to contain the situation. In this case study, some casualties might have already been identified by some physical symptoms of having both skin and eye irritations. And in chronic situation, they are usually weak as a result of their lungs being attacked by much exposure to Chlorine. Already hundreds of casualties have been discovered and moved 400 meters south of the affected areas to a safer location. The casualties should be divided based on the seriousness of their conditions. Those with minor exposure to the Chlorine gas should be treated quickly and transferred to the SAFE ZONE while those who have been heavily exposed to Chlorine be taken to the DE-CONTAMINATION ZONE. However, for the chronic situation, the first approach to treating a chemical attack is by undertaking the process of decontamination. In the course of this, victims that have been affected by the chemicals could be given first treatment before being taken to the hospitals for intensive medical attention (Sidell 2007). Therefore, pre-hospital treatment should be carried out at the DE-CONTAMINATION ZONE for the victims already identified. Victims with 6 slight exposure to Chlorine could help in the decontamination process by removing their contaminated properties and double-bagging them. The rescuers should ensure there is adequate respiration and pulse in the casualties’ body systems. And in the case of acute exposure, respirators could be provided to quickly supply oxygen that would energize the victims’ lungs. Warm water of about 45oC should be poured on the frostbitten skin caused by too much exposure to Chlorine. In case there is no warm water, a warm blanket could be wrapped round the affected part. To remove eye irritation, eye irrigation should be done: this involves irrigating the eyes with plain water or saline for 15 minutes. When there are children among the casualties, the treatment process requires more sensitive approach, including offering psychological treatment to subside the traumatic effects this condition may have caused (HM Government 2004b). For efficient treatment, the casualties should be categorized based on the following sub-divisions: (a) The Injured: These include the members of the public that have been serious affected by the chemicals. They could be in serious health condition, having had their lungs battered by huge Chlorine exposure. They could be put on a respirator to help them breathe while the de-contamination process is on. (b) The Uninjured Survivors: This group of people should be separated from the injured, but be treated for psychological trauma. 7 (c) Friends and Relatives: Those who are members of the same families and friends should not be separated from one another: they should rather be encouraged to stay together and energize their processes of recovery through filial cares and motivation. (d) Fatalities: Those who have lost their lives in the course of the chemical attacks should have their corpses deposited in the morgue. (e) Children: Children’s cases should be handled with utmost care. Most especially, they should be treated with either of their parents in attendance. (f) Evacuation: All the rescue organizations/agencies involved in the rescue operations should work hard in evacuating the victims from the Danger Zone by using all available means, including the Ambulance Services. Giving Warning and Information to the Public It is the duty of UK Central Government to appoint Public Information Officers whose job is to gather the necessary information about the disaster and spread it to the public as quickly as possible. There are several ways this could be done: the most effective one being using the city alarm system, if there is any. But in the absence of that, the warning about the Chlorine attacks, in this scenario, should be broadcast on the local radio or TV, stating precisely the areas where the attacks have been intense and explaining how the public could move away from the scene of danger, and how they could protect themselves in case of sudden Chlorine attacks (Moore & Lakha 2006). 8 Distributing handbills and other information materials could let the public know the extent of the attack. The efficiency of spreading the information to the public depends on the network of communication and the speed of logistics. If the traffic has been slowed due to the chemical attacks, there is every possibility that the public may hear the warning later than expected, most especially if the situation has been exacerbated by other natural disasters (Kaplan 1996). And using trained disaster information officers would make the job effective as they are already aware about the speed and the coverage areas when it comes to informing the public about a disastrous incident. Regional Resilience Forums (RRFs) could also help in reaching the public with the appropriate information. Issues Surrounding Incident Communications There are series of communications gadgets that Police Gold Commander can use to be in control of a rescue exercise undertaken by the Strategic Co-ordination Group. The commonest one is radio: rescuers can keep in touch with one another as well as with the Gold Commander by using high-frequency radios. However, Gold Commander could also use telephone, pagers, voice mails, emails and other communications means to establish constant coordination with the rest of the rescue team (Moore & Lakha 2006). However, not all these communications facilities would work well at a certain 9 circumstances. Radio messages may appear faint and inaudible if the incident of the chemical attack is in a skyscraper or on an elevator. Also, the availability of quick logistics around the areas of the attacks will be helpful for the rescuers to quickly connect with one another (Myers 1999). Another important issue to consider is the nomenclature of communications. If the rescue teams or agencies have adopted a uniform method of communicating, it is quite possible for their coordination efforts to be smooth and effective. On the contrary, using different jargons during rescue operations by various agencies would surely slow down the speed of the rescue efforts, as rescuers spend more time on understanding the message passed across. Strategies for Dealing with the Attending Media Representatives There is no doubt that the news of the Chlorine attacks would bring horde of journalists and media representatives to the scenes of the incident. But in order to prevent a situation of having the areas overcrowded by anxious media representatives, it is helpful if a media strategy is put in place. In this case, the NEWS CO-ORDINATION CENTRE (NCC) should be activated by the UK Central Government. The Public Information Officers appointed by the Central Government would handle all issues relating to the media. The duty of NCC is to send out press releases and organize press conferences with various media representatives with the hope to provide updates about the incidents and encourage the media representatives to ask questions about the incident (Haddow 2008). 10 Media representatives would be barred from visiting the scenes of the chemical attacks, even though they are experienced in covering dangerous scenes in the past. Several instances in the past have proved that allowing the press unlimited access in the course of a disaster might give them the freedom to prod unqualified officials for comments that may be contrary to the rescue team’s opinion. Therefore, Government-established Media Monitoring Unit should be in place to check media representatives’ excesses. Apart from periodic press releases, it would be helpful if the News Agencies approach the NCC for details of the attacks, which would be expected to come out in the news, whether on the local radios or TVs by working with Government News Networks. A Press Statement On a October 31 2008, we received several reports about a possible chemical attack on some people that were enjoying Christmas illumination on Promenade of Blackpool. Hundreds of casualties have been discovered and moved to a safer location called Decontamination Zone, 400 meters north of the sites of incident. These victims would be given pre-hospital treatment, which include decontamination, eye irrigation and skin-protection treatment. These chemical attacks are not unconnected to a raid carried out on a house located in the Birch Green area of Skelmersdale where some chemicals were discovered, including 11 Sodium Chloride, which could be used to produce Chlorine gas through the process of electrolysis. Actions have been started to investigate the motives behind these attacks. In the mean time, our Category One Responders are already on the attack scenes and doing everything possible to treat the casualties that have been identified while those who are unaffected have been advised to maintain a safe distance from the areas. Our Category Two Responders are on the way with more advanced equipment and treatment facilities so that we can be assured that the casualties would receive great treatment prior to their transfer to the hospitals. We would keep you informed about the latest state of our rescue and we have set up a website through which our activities could be tracked. We appeal to the public to take our warning seriously as we endeavor to keep people safe. If any agency or media representative want to contact us, please do so by getting across to our Disaster Media Supervisor. Let us have your questions and enquiries through our right channel. Thank you so much, and we are grateful for your cooperation.. 12 Reference List Haddow, G 2008, Disaster Communications in a Changing Media World. Butterworth-Heinemann, London. Her Majesty Government 2004a, Emergency Preparedness, UK, viewed 15 November 2009, Her Majesty Government 2004b, Emergency Response and Recovery, UK, viewed 15 November 2009, Kaplan, LG 1996, Emergency and Disaster Management Planning. McGraw-Hill Professional, New York. Moore, T & Lakha, R 2006, Tolley’s Handbook of Disaster and Management. Butterworth-Heinemann, London. Myers, KN 1999, Managers Guide to Contingency Planning for Disasters: Protecting Vital Facilities and Critical Operations, John Wiley & Sons, London. Sidell, FR 2007, Chemical Warfare Agents: Toxicology and Treatment. John Wiley and Sons, London. Read More