As a safety coordinator have you taken into consideration any staff with mobility issues in your emergency planning? Keep in mind staff with unobservable challenges that may or may not self-identify before an emergency. These individuals may need additional help during emergency situations.
Such issues may include:
◦Arthritis
◦Asthma
◦Cardiac condition
◦Chronic back problems
◦Psychological disability
Prepare a personal evacuation plan for individuals requiring special assistance during an evacuation. Be sure to include:
◦Intended route and means of evacuation
◦Who will assist them
◦Areas of refuge where they can wait for assistance
Update your department Emergency Action Plan annually to accurately describe:
◦The number of people who may require special assistance during an evacuation
◦Their primary work location
Assign 2 or more staff members who are willing and able to assist a colleague with a disability during evacuation.
Ensure that you have evacuation chair(s) on hand. Evacuation chairs are specially constructed for evacuating non-ambulatory persons from multi-level facilities. Most designs enable 1 or 2 assistants to control movement down stairs without lifting. Call our office at 604.277.5855 for more information on this product.