Page 58 - OHS, October 2020

EMERGENCY PLANNING
Planning for the Unanticipated Emergency—Are You Ready?
It is your job as a safety leader to expect,
react and adapt to emergencies as they unfold. BY LINDA SHERRARD
Unseen hazards are everywhere: COVID-19, hurricanes, ice storms, floods, plane crashes, toxic chemical releases—the list goes on. With all of these and more, the workplace
is an unpredictable place. As a safety leader, you have to be alert and ahead of the game to plan for any seen and unseen interruption and ensure staff, visitors, residents and company assets are safe and ready to continue operations in one form or another.
Much of your success depends on how workers view you, their leader or supervisor. Are you calm and proactive? Feeling panicked or defeated? Your staff needs you now more than ever, and you have trained for this your entire career. As safety leaders, it is your job to assist your company and employees succeed to every extent possible.
Understanding the Past and
Letting it Guide Our Future
Think back to 9/11. Building debris covered the area around the Twin Towers, and many unknown toxins existed in the air after the disaster. Hurricane Katrina caused extensive flooding, mold exposure and a huge shortage of PPE/PPA. Now, our newest battle is an unseen virus that is hurting the world, creating massive fear reactions, isolation, shortages and collapses of supplies for the basic cleaning solutions and PPA/PPE. Do not forget the added pressures on
families through lockdown, travel restrictions, and financial desperation that only heightens the stress on safety in the workplace.
Fear is a natural and terrible reaction to disasters like these. I see people in public places and workplaces covering their faces with plastic bags or washing hands until they crack and bleed. The endless loop of media coverage on national news adds to the widespread anxiety. This is the time to take what we know and plan for the future.
What crisis items did your organization have enough of a supply? PPE? Cleaning supplies? For each item, list an alternative. These alternatives will likely not be as good options as what is needed, but something is better than nothing. Safety must adapt—COVID-19 issues are reshaping safety and preparedness efforts to a level never anticipated, and it will continue to do so.
Just a short time ago, most facilities or jobsites expected work interruptions due to natural or man- made disasters, and planning ahead for a few days/ weeks of lost time was normal. Now we all have to rethink and re-plan for long-term shortages and work arounds when all our well-intended policies and SOP’s fail due to factors beyond our control.
As part of this, we have to be able to develop clear, concise awareness items that help. When our processes change because we have shortages, we
54 Occupational Health & Safety | OCTOBER 2020
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