Neighbourhood Services
Emergency Planning Unit
Why we plan for emergencies?
If disaster strikes, or if emergencies develop in East Ayrshire,
communities will look to the Council for support and advice.
It is in situations like this, where communities are under pressure,
resources are stretched, and officers are stressed, that the value of
having well produced, well rehearsed and a well enacted Civil Emergency
Plan is imperative. Our ability to respond appropriately and swiftly in
an emergency is of paramount importance.
Civil Contingencies Act
Local authorities have a number of duties placed on them by the Civil
Contingencies Act 2004 (Contingency Planning)(Scotland) Regualtions 2004.
These regualtions became law in April 2005, whilst the Regualtions came
into force in November 2005.
The Civil Contingencies Act is a framework that places several duties
on local authorities to:-
- Assess the risks of an emergency occurring and publish a community
risk register.
- Prepare and maintain emergency plans to make sure we can respond effectively
to an emergency.
- Co-operate with other agencies to develop multi-agency emergency response.
- Warn and inform the public.
- Provide advice to the public.
- Prepare and maintain plans to ensure continuity of our services during
emergencies.
- Promote business continuity to local businesses.
The Scottish Government's document "Preparing
Scotland" provides fuller details on the philosophy and structures
with statutory guidance on the implementation of the Regulations, good
practice and the integration of national and local planning for emergencies.
The Emergency Planning Unit Remit
In East Ayrshire, emergency planning is the responsibility of the Executive
Director of Neighbourhood Services.
The Council Emergency Planning Officer's main duties are:-
- to prepare contingency plans;
- to ensure key staff within East Ayrshire Council are prepared for
their emergency role, through the delivery of training and exercising.
- to assist the Chief Executive co-ordinate the emergency response and
advise the Emergency Management Team;
The role of East Ayrshire Council may be summarised as follows:
- support the emergency services and those engaged in the response
to the incident.
- co-ordinate the response of the non-emergency services
- provide a wide range of support services for the community.
- lead the recovery and return to normality of the community
- maintain normal public services.
 Contact
Information: Emergency Planning Officer 
How do we prepare for Emergencies?
- Civil Emergency Plan & Out of Hours Directory
This is the Council's generic contingency plan for non-specific emergencies,
which is implemented if the Council is involved in a civil emergency/disaster.
The Plan is tested on a regular basis by holding training Exercises,
to ensure the key members of staff know their role during an emergency.
- Other Contingency Plans
As part of the Integrated Emergency Management planning process local
multi-agency contingency planning liaison groups meet, to discuss
and review contingency plans, to arrange training exercises for sites
and hazards which require a specific plan, some of these are:
-
Training & Exercising
One of the main duties of the Emergency Planning Officer is to prepare
key staff to deliver their emergency role, this is undertaken by developing
training and exercises for the officers who have a designated emergency
response. This training is carried out with involvement of the emergency
services and voluntary agencies.
Liaison with Other Partner Agencies
The Emergency Planning Unit meets regularly with other Council's Emergency
Planning Officers from neighbouring authorities, as well as with representatives
from the emergency services; health boards; public utilities and voluntary
agencies:
The purpose of these meetings are:
- to liaise with partner organisations to develop relationships before
an incident occurs.
- to share information and to develop best practice for dealing with
emergencies through learning lessons from incidents and exercises.
- to alleviate any problems which may arise, e.g. contacting officers
outwith office hours.
- to participate and develop joint training initiatives.
What type of emergencies are we likely to face
in East Ayrshire?
A major emergency can happen quickly and without warning, causing serious
disruption to life with consequences in excess of those which can be dealt
with under normal circumstances.
Emergencies may arise from:
- transport accidents - increased number of heavy goods vehicles and
chemical tankers on local trunk roads potentially causing environmental
pollution problems; rail incidents.
- aircraft crashes - close proximity to Prestwick Airport.
- public utility failures- disruption to vulnerable customers.
- outbreak of infections with humans - pandemic flu; e-coli.
- outbreak of infections/contagious diseases in animals - Foot and Mouth;
Rabies; Avian Flu.
- acts of terrorism - bomb threats and evacuations
- severe weather - flooding incidents; heavy snowfalls and severe gales
causing structural damage.
To report any emergency to the Council contact the Emergency Helpline
0845 7 24 00 00.
Flooding
A Flood Response Plan has been prepared in conjunction with the emergency
services and utilities to ensure all agencies can responde to this type
of incident. The Council's Helpline has a protocol to alert the Incident
Response Team when calls are received relating to Flooding.
Further advice on how you can protect your home can be found on
the Scottish Environment Protection Agency
(SEPA) website or by telephoning SEPA's Floodline on 0845 9881188.
How do we respond to Emergencies?
Our ability to respond appropriately and swiftly in an emergency is of
paramount importance; it requires an integrated and co-ordinated approach.
The Civil Emergency Plan and Out of Hours Directory outlines the special
management and operational arrangements, which will direct our response.
The Plan follows guidance offered by the Cabinet Office, known as Integrated
Emergency Management, which focuses on the consequences rather than the
cause.
For Integrated Emergency Mananagement to be most effective, it must be
implemented by all agencies involved including emergency services, health
boards, public utilities and the voluntary agencies.
Incident Response Team
The speed of the council's response and the actual response will differ
depending on when the incident occurs, during office hours or out of hours
(evenings and weekends). If it is out of hours the Emergency Helpline
0845 7 24 00 00, is the first point of contact to the Council by members
of the public. If this is the case, the Helpline will assess the information,
alert the Council's Emergency Planning Officer or other members of the
Incident Response Team. (There are six members within the Incident Response
Team if the CEPO is unavailable; another member of the Council's Incident
Response Team will be contacted.)
On receipt of a call the Incident Response Officer assesses the situation
using the information given and may begin the call out procedure for other
officers to respond, to direct resources and to assist the public.
For further information and assistance
Contact
Information: Emergency Planning Officer
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