By Einar Jensen, Risk Reduction Coordinator
Evergreen Fire/Rescue
For some buildings, such as schools, assisted living communities, and office buildings
with 500 or more occupants, an emergency operations plan is required by the
International Fire Code. However, all businesses can benefit from having at least a
framework for emergency reactions available for employees to peruse.
Effective emergency operations plans, which come in all shapes and sizes, include the
hazards that could impact the building and its occupants, tips for preventing
emergencies, and guidance for reacting safely to incidents including evacuating,
sheltering in place, or staying home. Effective plans also identify strategies for
recovering from emergencies and resources for employees.
When creating or updating your emergency operations plan, consider the following
situations: broken pipes, fire alarm activation, sudden cardiac arrest, flooding, wildfire
evacuation, wildfire smoke, car crash into the building, chemical spills, suicide by an
employee, power outage, and domestic violence at work. Include who and how to call
for help.
Collaborate with employees and EFR to craft the plan to include multiple perspectives
and areas of expertise in the process. Including employees in planning engages them to
train more and empowers them to react with flexibility and resilience when
emergencies occur.
Plans will never accommodate every type of possible emergency, but as long as the
planning process was inclusive and meaningful, team members will be able to adapt and
overcome any situation at their level of responsibility. The time you and your employees
invest in planning for emergencies can have significant returns when bad things happen.
We at Evergreen Fire/Rescue are committed to our community.
If you want our assistance in developing an emergency plan, please email us at
