Emergencies toolbox talk

What it is

Incidents such as injury, illness, fire or environmental damage that need an immediate response, first aid or rescue.

Controls to check, most effective first

1. Prepare a site emergency plan covering fire, injury, chemical spills, evacuation and rescue, and brief all workers on it.
2. Keep emergency exits, assembly points and access for emergency vehicles clearly signposted and unobstructed.
3. Provide first aid kits and trained first aiders suited to the number of workers, the hazards and distance from medical help.
4. Keep fire extinguishers suited to the fire risks on site, and train workers to use them.
5. Display emergency numbers, the site address and directions so callers can guide emergency services to the right place.
6. Run emergency drills, and review the plan after drills, incidents or changes to the site.

Where it comes up on the job

Work steps from SafetyDocs templates that deal with emergencies:

• Emergency responseCall 000, follow the site's emergency procedures, give first aid and report the incident.From Lasers
• Implement a Falls Emergency Rescue PlanPut a falls rescue plan in placeFrom Antenna Satellite Dish Installation
• Emergency preparation & compression chamber useHave emergency and medical equipment, a recompression chamber and decontamination ready.From Diving
• Emergency response if co-worker suffers electric shockRespond to a co-worker who suffers an electric shockFrom Plumbing Electrical Safety
• Emergency response- FallRespond to a fall and await rescueFrom Safety Harness

Questions for the crew

1. Where could emergencies come up on this job today?
2. Is any of this work on today's job: Emergency response; Implement a Falls Emergency Rescue Plan; Emergency preparation & compression chamber use?
3. The most effective control is: “Prepare a site emergency plan covering fire, injury, chemical spills, evacuation and rescue, and brief all workers on it”. Can we do that here? If not, why not?
4. Which controls for emergencies are missing or not working on this site?
5. When would you stop work because of emergencies, and who would you tell?
6. How do we report a hazard, a near miss or an incident on this job?