When Things Go Wrong

Emergency Response and the News Media

Will you be prepared?

What Interests the News Media?

CrisisConflictDangerDeathDramaDestructionThreats to Life and PropertyImportant People, Places and Things

Accidents and IncidencesWhat Are The Leading Causes?

Human causes

1.Inattention

2.Failure to follow procedures

3.Short cuts

4.Carelessness

5.Intentional act

6.Lack of training and or supervision

Accidents and IncidencesLeading Causes

• Mechanical1. Power Failure / Surge2. Equipment malfunction3. Misuse of equipment4. Outside influence affecting operations

Vehicle accidentWeather related eventEarthquakeExplosion

When Things Go Wrong!What’s Your Plan(s) of Action?

• You should already have on hand a plan that addresses:

• Standard Operating Policies and Procedures• Emergency Operating Procedures for

Accidents and Injuries.• Emergency Operating Procedures for

Notification to Public Safety Agencies• Emergency Operating Procedures for

Evacuation of the Facility

• Emergency Contacts Information

• Inventory – Quantities

• Site Map

• Emergency Response Plan

• Employee Training

Business Plan Requirements

When Things Go Wrong!

• Get a responsible person to call 911• Clearly state the nature of the emergency and

location of the emergency.• Advise weather or not there are injuries, people

trapped or a rescue situation• Advise if there is a known toxic or hazardous

situation and if an evacuation is in progress.• Stay calm and answer the Dispatchers questions

slowly and clearly, do not hang up until told to do so.

When Things Go Wrong!

• Implement Emergency Operating Procedures

• Be sure to have responsible person meet the arriving Emergency Response Personnel at a specific location.

• Have appropriate emergency information readily available ie. Specific incident details, Accounting of employees, MSDS, keys for access etc.

Now That You’re The NewsWhat do you do?

• Hide ? Not a good idea

• Stonewall and be evasive? Not a good idea.

• Order them off the property or keep them away? A management decision or Policy, probably.

• Are they going to go away? No! The news media will get their story.

PIO Duties & Responsibilities

• Primary contact between news media and incident personnel.

• Relieve the IC and incident personnel from having to deal with news media

• Gather Facts and Information regarding the incident

• Communicate important public information to the news media and general public

PIO Duties & Responsibilities

• Track down and dispel rumors

• Keep incident personnel and cooperating agencies informed

• Arrange for and assist the news media in securing appropriate interviews with incident management personnel

• Work with business and industry representatives to get facts and information

Conveying the Facts and Information

• The “Agency Information Officer” is looking for the facts as they are known at the time, an investigation will reveal more accurate details later.

• Who, What, Where, When, Why, and how is the basic information we’re looking for.

• The Why and How may not initially be known.

What’s an ideal Situation ?

“Not having an Incident or Accident Happen”

Working Together During an Incident

• Let’s meet and discuss Facts as they are known• Tell me about Proprietary Information issues• Tell me about your concerns with the news

media and your companies policy.• Agree that it’ OK to disagree • Understand I have an obligation to provide

emergency public information, and the public has a right to know what the FD is doing to protect them and keep them safe.

Wouldn’t it be nice to say. .

• ABC Company had an emergency incident today.

• They had an Emergency Response Plan

• They implemented the Plan

• The problem has been isolated and does not pose a risk to the community or employees.

• There were no injuries

• The situation is stable and workers will be back to work in a few minutes.

Wouldn’t it be nice to say

• An investigation revealed the cause was a mechanical failure.

• ABC Company has an on-going worker safety program and in this case the training paid off, the company was able to be back up and operational after only one hour.

What You Don’t Want!

• ABC Company has a history of incidents• The company has repeatedly failed to do

proper maintenance and repairs.• ABC Company has many outstanding

equipment and safety violations.• ABC Company has been issued a “Stop Work

Order” for the fourth time this year.• ABC Company has a history of non-

compliance with several regulatory agencies.

In Conclusion

• The PIO is on scene to get important public information (Facts and Information) and convey to the public what actions are being taken to help ensure public safety and to inform the public so that they may make informed decisions about what actions they will take.

Emergency Public Informationverses Public Relations

• The PIO is looking for emergency public information and works with the news media to keep the public informed.

• The PIO is not the Public Relations Agent for your business or company, that is someone else’s responsibility.

Expect the Unexpected

• Be Prepared! Have Plan• Practice the Plan• Provide Employee Training• If you use the plan take time to evaluate how

well it worked.• Update the plan with necessary changes.

THANKSThe End