Emergency and Fire Preparedness

Employers are responsible for the safety and health of their employees, and emergency action and fire prevention plans (EAPs and FPPs) help keep employees safe and respond quickly and effectively to an emergency.

Working safely and following proper procedures for emergency preparedness can prevent many emergency situations.

Fire Hazards Safety

One of the most common workplace emergency is fire. The best way to prevent injuries and deaths from fires is to prevent fires in the first place.

Unfortunately, thousands of workplace fires and related explosions occur each year.

Once a fire has started, it will continue unless at least one of the elements of (fire fuel, oxygen, and heat) is removed or blocked.

Fire Prevention Plan

Fire prevention plans include a list of possible workplace fire hazards. They also detail proper handling and storage procedures, such as selecting and using storage cabinets, properly labeling and marking storage containers, and securing materials from damage.

Fire prevention plans list potential ignition sources and controls procedures for them:

• Open flame—shut off the source

• Static electricity—bond and ground

• Excess heat, such as from a hot plate—turn it off or allow it to cool

• Electric arc—ensure that appliances are insulated or safe by design
  

Fire prevention plans also include names and/or job titles of personnel responsible for the maintenance of fire systems and control of fuel source hazards.

Best housekeeping practices include keeping clutter to a minimum, and never storing combustible materials where water from sprinklers won’t be effective.

Other Emergencies

• Natural disasters like events like earthquakes, floods, hurricanes, and tornadoes

• Workplace violence such as physical violence, harassment, intimidation, or other threatening and disruptive behavior

• Toxic chemical release which includes fire, explosions, contamination, and toxic gases

Emergency Plans

Emergency action and fire prevention plans include requirements for emergency preparedness and fire prevention, work procedures, maintenance, emergency alert notifications, and training.

No matter what the emergency—fire, natural disaster, workplace violence, or toxic chemical spill, it’s the emergency action plan that provides specifics on how to respond after it occurs.

Emergency Exits and Routes

Depending on the emergency, the best response is often to get out of the building by using emergency exits and their access ways.

An emergency exit route is a continuous and unobstructed path of travel from any point in a workplace to a place of safety.

An exit route has three components which are permanent parts of the building:

• Exit doors that are unlocked from the inside

• Exit access (passageways, stairs, aisles, ramps) that are properly lit, clear of obstructions, and wide enough

• Exit discharge which may lead directly outside or to an open space with outside access

It’s your responsibility to know the location of all emergency exits. Your life could depend on it.

Emergency Alarms

An alarm may be the first warning of fire or other emergency.

To take appropriate action, you’ll need to know:

• The locations of the manual pull boxes or other alarm systems

• How and when to operate the alarm system

• What the alarm sounds like

• What action to take when you hear the alarm

Depending on the particular hazards in your workplace, there may be different signals for different types of emergencies and responses; for example, take cover or move to the severe weather shelter, lock down, and evacuate.

Make sure you know the sight or sound of the evacuation alarm and primary and alternate escape routes.