New media has created new challenges in the world of emergency preparedness and communications.
HazMat team members John Neil and Mike Gaylard assist a student actor from the site of a mock chemical spill and fire at the Chemistry building. The exercise is an opportunity for campus emergency responders to improve their effectiveness in dealing with potential emergency situations at the university.
Social media forums, such as YouTube and Twitter, can be used to disseminate information quicker than more traditional forms of communication. Whether the information is accurate or not, whether it provides context or shows a piece of the whole puzzle, the information shared with the community is sometimes beyond the control of professional communicators.
On May 3, The University of Western Ontario held a mock emergency exercise – a chemical spill and fire in the Chemistry Building – and to complicate the made-up scenario, a YouTube video of the event was leaked and a local radio station received unconfirmed accounts from a student witness. Although these were part of the mock exercise, they represent realistic concerns.
The use of social media is “a reality of today,” says Elgin Austen, director of Western’s Campus Community Police Service.
It is easy to think of an emergency exercise in terms of the role police, fire or other emergency responders play, but effective communications – both internal and external – can be critical to ensuring everyone’s safety.
As part of the Harmony 5 emergency exercise, the university’s communication tools were tested. This included mass e-mails, an emergency version of the Western home page and emergency-related messaging on the main telephone switchboard, updates to the university’s Twitter feed, Facebook page and YouTube channel.
“Communications is always the most difficult,” says Austen, explaining the goal is to be as transparent as possible in the case of an emergency.
There is an expectation from the public that Western be proactive, from alerting people there is an emergency situation, through providing the information people need to keep themselves safe, adds Helen Connell, Associate Vice-President, Department of Communications and Public Affairs.
“Family, friends, colleagues, alumni and the general public expect to receive facts and information on the situation and how Western is responding,” she says. “These exercises provide us with an opportunity to test not only our emergency plans, but how we react as a team and as individuals when we are under pressure. They allow us to hone our skills.”
While internal communications can be easily managed, the widespread use of smart phones and external media who arrive on the scene can present complications.
By introducing scenarios like a YouTube video or a local media interview into the simulation, campus communicators were able to put in place a strategy for a response.
“Social media is increasingly where people are turning to for their information. While we encourage people to check Western’s home page regularly for information during an emergency, we also post updates on the situation to Facebook and Twitter,” says Connell.
This is the fifth in the series of Harmony emergency training exercises at Western. Campus responders involved in the exercise included Campus Police, Student Emergency Response Team, Fire Safety and Emergency Management, HazMat Team, Emergency Response Team and Emergency Operations Control Group.
“It is important to do the exercises so that everybody is able to understand the gravity of the situation and understand how to do things correctly so we have the most positive outcomes possible,” says Austen.
“With the number of emergency teams that we have, the multidisciplinary areas they are from, we have to train together and communicate because each one is specialized in their own skills and responsibilities. Putting everyone together can make a strong team if we are working in a co-ordinated way.”
This year, the exercise involved a chemical explosion and a fire, and an unknown substance was created as a result of a chemical spill. Six people received minor burns and a triage was set up in the building to assess the injuries.
The HazMat Team arrived at the scene and helped a student to a safe area. Dressed in green and yellow protective suits, the team took samples of the unknown substance for testing.
Although this was all a simulation and actors played the role of students in the lab, the response was as realistic as possible, with campus responders performing their duties in the same way they would during an actual emergency.
Austen says it is important to run through the motions of an emergency response so everyone becomes familiar with their roles and can make improvements to the response measures.
“Yes, these things do happen. We want to be able to prevent them from happening, but should they occur, we want to be prepared.”