032. Wilts Swindon LRF Joint Procedures Guide

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Wiltshire and Swindon LRF Joint Incident Procedures GuidePage 2 of 84

FOREWORD BY THE LOCAL RESILIENCE FORUM

Dealing with a Major Incident in an effective manner requires the co-operation of

many emergency services, Health Protection Agency, Local Authorities andVoluntary Agencies. The shared knowledge and resources brought to bear in a jointapproach will bring a Major Incident to a successful conclusion. For this to happen inpractice requires an understanding by all services and agencies of their own andeach other's roles and responsibilities when faced with a Major Incident.

Emergencies can happen anywhere and at any time. Therefore, it would be foolishto believe that such an incident could not occur in Wiltshire. With this in mind it isclearly prudent that the county should have a comprehensive procedural documentfor the integrated response of those emergency agencies that might be involved inmitigating the effects of such an incident.

This is now the second edition of this document. It is of paramount importance thatwhere there is a living document, such as this one, that it is regularly reviewed so thatit reflects current practice in light of experience and it introduces new procedures.You will find that this document has built on the previous version and includes thelatest changes that affect us all including the new structure of the Health Service.

Again I welcome the publication of these procedures that should do much to ensurethat an incident in Wiltshire can be successfully handled with minimum risk to boththose operating at the scene and the public at large.

I commend this document to all who could be involved in a Major Incident, it isessential reading.

P Vaughan

Assistant Chief Constable (Operations)Chairperson

Wiltshire and Swindon LRF Joint Incident Procedures Guide


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The contents of this Guide have been drafted in accordance with the latest agreedprocedures of The Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO), The Chief andAssistant Chief Fire Officers Association (CACFOA), The Ambulance ServiceAssociation (ASA), Local Authorities and NHS Guidance. Extensive consultation has

also been undertaken with the Military, Voluntary Services and other organisationslikely to be involved in a Major Incident.

Enquiries about this document should be made to the emergency planningdepartment of the relevant service shown below:

Wiltshire Constabulary

Sergeant Bob YOUNG, Major Incident Planning, Operations Support, PoliceHeadquarters, London Road, Devizes, Wiltshire SN10 2DN

Wiltshire Ambulance Service (NHS Trust)

Mr Mike Love, Ambulance Headquarters, Malmesbury Road, Chippenham, Wiltshire

Wiltshire Fire Brigade

Divisional Officer Gus CUTHBERT, Wiltshire Fire Brigade, Brigade Headquarters,The Manor House, Potterne, Devizes, Wiltshire

Wiltshire County Council Emergency Planning Department

Mr Mark KIMBERLIN, County Emergency Planning Officer, Bythesea Road,Trowbridge, Wiltshire.Miss Jane BROWNING, Emergency Planning Officer

Swindon Borough Council

Mr Sam Weller, Head of Emergency Management, Premier House, Station Road,Swindon, SN1 1TZ.

Wiltshire Primary Care Trusts

Mrs Debbie Haynes, Emergency Planning Officer Kennet and North Wiltshire PCT,Southgate House, Pans Lane, Devizes, Wiltshire, SN10 5EQ

The Wiltshire Local Resilience Forum (LRF) first published this Guide in 2000.

First Edition: November 2000Second Edition: April 2004Third Edition March 2005

Wiltshire LRF 2004.This document remains the copyright of the Wiltshire Local Resilience Forum and as such should notbe reproduced without permission. It is not permissible to offer the entire document, or selections, inwhat ever format (hard copy, electronic or other media) for sale exchange or gift without writtenpermission of the Chairperson, Wiltshire LRF. Use of the document for publications or reports shouldinclude an acknowledgement to the Wiltshire LRF as the source document.



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Figure 1 LRF Membership

THE WILTSHIRELOCAL RESILIENCE FORUM

WiltshireConstabularyAssistant Chief

Constable(Operations)

Wiltshire FireBrigade

Assistant Chief FireOfficer

Wiltshire County

CouncilCounty Emergency

Planning Officer(+ Secretariat)

Wiltshire & SwindonPrimary Care Trusts

Emergency Planning Lead

EnvironmentAgency

Emergency PlanningLead

43 (Wessex)Brigade

Joint RegionalLiaison Officer



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Figure 2

THE WILTSHIRE LOCAL RESILIENCE FORUM LIAISON PROCESS

Wiltshire County Council EPO

PUBLIC EVENTS SAFETYGROUPS

Local Authority (Chair)Ambulance Service NHS Trust

Fire BrigadePoliceWiltshire CC or Swindon BC EPUCo-opted members as required (e.g. Utilities)

TRAINING SUBGROUP

Fire Brigade (Chair)Ambulance Service NHS TrustPolicePrimary Care Trusts EPLSwindon Borough Head of EMWiltshire County Council EPO43 (Wessex) Brigade

INFORMATION,COMMUNICATION

TECHNOLOGY SUB GROUPPolice (Chair)Ambulance Service NHS TrustFire BrigadePrimary Care Trusts EPLSwindon Borough Council, Head of EM.Wiltshire County Council EPO

VASECWiltshire County Council (Chair)

Ambulance Service NHS TrustBritish Red CrossMulti Faith representativeSt John AmbulanceSalvation ArmySwindon Borough CouncilWRVS

NHSPCT Emergency Planning Officer (Chair)Ambulance Service NHS TrustRoyal United Hospital NHS TrustSalisbury District Hospital NHS TrustSwindon and Marlborough NHS TrustWiltshire Shared Services Consortium

RESPONSE SUPPORTGROUP

Wiltshire CC (Chair)Bristol WaterWessex WaterThames WaterScottish Southern ElectricTranscoBritish GasFirst Great Wessex TrainsNetwork RailEWS RailwayBTOrange

NTLVodafoneRWE InnogyFreight Liner

LOCALAUTHORITYSUB GROUPS

Wiltshire County Council (Chair)Kennet District CouncilNorth Wilts District CouncilSalisbury District CouncilSwindon Borough CouncilWest Wilts District Council

LRFPolice (Chair)

Ambulance Service NHSTrust

Environment Agency

Fire BrigadeHealth Protection Agency

Primary Care TrustsRegional Resilience TeamSwindon Borough CouncilWiltshire County Council

43 (Wessex) Brigade

HAZMAT PROFILING GROUPPrimary Care Trusts Emergency Planning Officer (Chair)Ambulance Service NHS Trust Environment AgencyFire Brigade Health Protection Agency

Health and Safety Executive Kennet District CouncilNorth Wiltshire District Council PoliceSalisbury District Council Swindon Borough CouncilWest Wiltshire District Council Wiltshire County Council



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INTRODUCTION

The Local Resilience Forum (LRF) recognises that every Major Incident is differentand has its own unique features. The advice contained within this guide should only

be regarded as a guide and not a replacement for the emergency procedure plans ofeach service. It is designed to offer a framework within which those who areresponsible for the successful resolution of the incident are able to work together withmaximum efficiency.

Experience has taught that there are many seemingly harmless sets ofcircumstances that can, if not dealt with speedily, escalate to the level of a majorincident. Prevention is better than cure. No one will be criticised for treating anincident as serious in the first instance even if events later prove it not to be. Thedefinitions and procedures contained in this guide, dealing with Major Incidents, applyequally to arrangements which should be put in place to ensure the speedy resolution

of seemingly minor incidents.

This guide has been prepared for the information and guidance of the emergencyagencies but should be used by any other responsible organisation that may have torespond to a Major Incident.



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TERMS OF REFERENCE

Function

To consider policy matters at the strategic level in relation to Major IncidentManagement.

Aim

To co ordinate effective and efficient integrated emergency managementarrangements within the County of Wiltshire and Borough of Swindon.

Co opted Members

Representatives of Category Two Responders and other appropriate agencies

will be invited to attend LRF meetings and to participate in the work of the LRFas and when necessary.

Objectives

To establish a strategy for co-operation and the sharing of informationin order to facilitate the effective completion of risk assessments andplans.

To direct a programme of joint risk assessments and review, in order toidentify the range of emergencies faced in the LRF area.

In light of those risk assessments, to set priorities and tasks for multiagency contingency planning, and to ensure that those priorities andtasks are achieved.

To endorse joint contingency plans.

To provide policy direction on the public dissemination of riskassessments and plans.

To promote joint training and exercising for all responding organisationsin the Wiltshire area.

To establish principles for advising, warning and informing the publicbefore, during and after an emergency on a multi agency basis acrossthe LRF area.

To promote mutual support for the business continuity arrangements forindividual responding agencies.

To co ordinate Wiltshires LRF strategic input into the RegionalResilience Forum.

To liaise with adjacent LRFs and agree procedures for mutual aid.



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To determine the priorities for , and receive reports from the sub groupsestablished by the LRF.

To provide the nucleus for the Strategic Co-ordinating Group in theevent of an emergency.



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MAJOR INCIDENTS

Definition

A Major Incident is any emergency (including known or suspected acts of terrorism)that requires the implementation of special arrangements by one or all of theemergency services, the NHS or the Local Authorities and will generally includesome or all of the following features:

(a) The initial treatment, rescue and transportation of a large number ofcasualties;

(b) The involvement either directly or indirectly of large numbers of people;

(c) The handling of a large number of enquiries likely to be generated both

from the public and the news media, usually made to police;

(d) The need for a large scale combined resources of the Police, FireBrigade and Ambulance Service.

(e) The mobilisation and organisation of the emergency services andsupporting agencies, for example, local authority, to cater for the threatof death, serious injury or homelessness to a large number of people.

(f) For specific health purposes, a major incident may be defined as:

Any occurrence which presents a serious threat to the health of thecommunity, disruption to the service, or causes (or is likely to cause)such members or types of casualties as to require specialarrangements to be implemented by hospitals, ambulance services orprimary care trusts

EMERGENCY

Definition

The Civil Contingencies Act creates a new definition, that of Emergency;

An event or situation which threatens serious damage to human welfare in a place inthe UK, the environment of a place in the UK, or war or terrorism which threatensserious damage to the security of the UK

Stages

Most Major Incidents can be considered to have four stages:

initial response;

consolidation; recovery and

restoration.



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An investigation into the cause of the incident may be superimposed on to thewhole structure. (See Fig. 3 overleaf).



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Fig. 3 The stages of a Major Incident

Consolidation

Declaration

A Major Incident may be declared by any agency within the LRF that considers any ofthe criteria outlined in the definition above have been satisfied. A Major Incident toone of the agencies may not be so regarded by another. However, each of the otheragencies will attend with an appropriate pre-determined response, which could be ina standby capacity.

Initial Response Recovery

Investigation

Stand-by Restoration

Hearings:Trials,Inquests,PublicEnquiries andCivil LitigationR

ESPONSE

TIME



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MAIN FUNCTIONS OF THE RESPONDING AGENCIES

General

Rescue will often be the prime function of the emergency services. Responsibility forthe rescue of survivors lies with the Wiltshire Fire Brigade. The care andtransportation of casualties to hospital is the responsibility of the Wiltshire AmbulanceService. The Wiltshire Constabulary will co-ordinate all operations, and the localauthorities will act in support.

In order to ensure health and safety of all personnel moving within the inner cordon(area of immediate operational activity) the Fire Brigade will operate an IncidentCommand System and take the responsibility for the safety of personnel within thatarea. Once the role of the Fire Brigade is no longer required at the incident thisfunction is passed to other appropriate agencies.

Common Objectives

All Responding Agencies and supporting agencies responding to a declared MajorIncident will be working to provide a co-ordinated response through the followingcommon objectives. Each agency will have their own primary responsibilities withinthese common objectives. (See below)

To save life, protect property and alleviate suffering associated with theincident, at the scene and elsewhere

To prevent the incident escalating.

To safeguard the environment. To facilitate a joint co-ordinated approach through liaison.

To protect and preserve the scene.

To provide a joint response to the media.

To prevent or minimise adverse effects on the Health and Welfare ofthose involved in the incident.

To gather, collate and disseminate information.

To update friends and relatives on relevant issues.

To investigate the cause.

To contribute to the de-briefing process and subsequent

investigation/inquires. To maintain the service normally provided.

To provide continued support, welfare and liaison to all involved in theincident after the initial response.

To restore normality after all necessary actions have been taken.

To ensure that an epidemiological follow up is provided

These common objectives will be achieved through the invocation of the primaryroles and responsibilities of each Responding Agency.



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The PoliceThe primary areas of police responsibility at a Major Incident are:

To save life in conjunction with the other emergency services.

The co-ordination of the responding emergency agencies and othersupporting organisations both at the scene of the incident andelsewhere.

To secure, protect and preserve the scene and to control sightseersand traffic through the use of cordons, diversions and filters.

To investigate the incident and obtain and secure evidence inconjunction with other investigative bodies where applicable.

To ensure the access and egress for all the Emergency RespondingAgencies and supporting organisations.

To collate and distribute casualty information.

To identify the dead on behalf of Her Majestys (HM) Coroner.

To prevent crime.

To ensure short term measures to restore normality after all necessaryactions have been taken.

The Fire Brigade

The Wiltshire Fire Brigade is responsible for the following: -

Life-saving through search and rescue.

Fire fighting and fire prevention.

Rendering humanitarian services.

Safety management within the inner cordon by implementation of anIncident Command System (see further definition within Section 7Scene Management).

Provide and or obtain specialist advice and assistance in themanagement of hazardous materials.

Protection and consideration of all environmental issues.

Salvage and damage control.

Decontamination of People.



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The Ambulance Service

The primary areas of responsibility for the Wiltshire Ambulance Service at a MajorIncident may be summarised as:

To save life together with the other emergency services.

To provide treatment, stabilisation and care of those injured at thescene.

To provide appropriate transport for medical staff, equipment andresources.

To establish effective triage points and systems and determine thepriority evacuation needs of those injured.

To provide a focal point at the incident for all National Health Serviceand other medical resources.

To lead and provide communication facilities for National HealthService resources at the scene, with direct radio links to hospitals,control facilities and any other agency as required.

To alert the receiving hospitals.

To provide transport to the incident scene for the medical incident

officer, mobile medical/surgical teams and their equipment.

To arrange the most appropriate means of transporting those injured tothe receiving and specialist hospitals.

To maintain emergency cover throughout the Wiltshire AmbulanceService area and return to a state of normality at the earliest time.

To inform the Wiltshire Primary Care Trusts of all potential MajorIncidents.

To maintain the Health and Safety of all personnel at the scene.

The Local Authority

The Local Authority is responsible for the following:-

To support the emergency services and those agencies engaged in theresponse to an incident.

To be prepared to lead in certain Major Incidents, for example, incidents

involving schools.



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To provide a co-ordinated response for all Local Authority resources.

To maintain services and ensure a return to normality as soon aspossible.

To activate and co-ordinate the response of the voluntary agencies,utilities and other supporting agencies.

To provide transportation and suitable temporary accommodation forsurvivors, evacuees, friends and relatives etc

To assist with the provision of suitable premises for use as temporarymortuaries. (See the Temporary Mortuary Guide).

To provide, on request, a media centre.

To provide emergency catering.

To provide, on request, engineering, highways, environmental health,communications and specialist support.

The Wiltshire and Swindon Primary Care Trusts

The primary areas of responsibility for the Primary Care Trusts at a Major Incident,may be summarised as:

Assessing the impact on health and health services of every potentialmajor incident.

Where necessary providing the strategic management of an incidentwhich involves a range of health service providers.

Providing the Health Service input and obtain specialist health advisefrom the Wiltshire Health Protection Team to the strategic managementof a Major Incident.

Ensuring that services of all providers of health care are supported tomeet the needs of the local population.

Ensuring that the Local NHS Trusts and Ambulance Service have majorincident plans and the necessary resources to put them into action.

Co-ordinating Primary Care response.

Providing a strategic view on long term threats.

Commission Wiltshire Health Protection Team to undertake

epidemiological follow up.



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The Environment Agency

The Environment Agency will respond to incidents it is notified of or upon the requestof the emergency services, or local authority, for any incident where there is a threatof harm to the environment. The primary roles at a Major Incident may besummarised as:

For a pollution or other incident:

Ensure the source of pollution is traced and stopped

Ensure remedial action is being taken to prevent situation worsening

Take samples from polluted watercourses and analyse wherenecessary

Advise on decontamination methods and disposal of contaminatedwaste arising from decontamination

Investigate the incident and obtain and secure evidence in conjunctionwith other investigative bodies where applicable

Advise and authorise where appropriate on disposal of waste arisingfrom the incident and clean up operations.

For a flooding incident

Issue flood warnings on main rivers to the public and relevantorganisations

Maintain Environment Agency flood defences

Provide assistance to other agencies when appropriate/possible

Provide up to date information on flooding situation during the incidentfrom continuous monitoring.



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ACTIONS BY FIRST OFFICERS AT THE SCENE

IT IS IMPORTANT TO STRESS THAT A MAJOR INCIDENT SHOULD BEFORMALLY DECLARED AS SOON AS THE CRITERIA (Defined in Section 3)ARE SATISFIED.

The Police

The immediate responsibility of the first police officer to arrive at the scene is toassume interim charge of police resources and to ensure that the other emergencyservices are informed if not already in attendance. The priority is to assess andinform and not to get personally involved in rescue work.

An early request for the police helicopter will help assess the scale of the incident.

The mnemonic SAD has been devised to help.

S - URVEY Report from a safe area and be aware of your ownsafety and that of others attending the scene (carry outan initial risk assessment).

A - ASSESS Assess what has happened and inform the ControlCentre.

D - DECLARE Declare a Major Incident at an early stage if deemedappropriate.

The first officer must pass, without delay, the following information by radio to theircontrol room. The mnemonic CHALETS has been devised to help:

C - CASUALTIES Approximate numbers of casualties - dead, injured anduninjured.

H - HAZARDS Present and potential.

A - ACCESS Best access routes for emergency vehicles and suitableprovisional rendezvous points (RVP).

L - LOCATION The exact location of the incident, using map referencesif possible.

E - EMERGENCY Those emergency services present and those required.

T - TYPE The type of incident with brief details of types andnumbers of vehicles, trains, buildings, aircraft and soon.

S SAFETY The safety of others attending the scene including theofficer him/herself.



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The officer must then start a written log and maintain radio contact withhis/her control centre to co-ordinate the response of the police and otheremergency services until relieved by an officer of more senior rank.

Fire Brigade

Since the initial call to an incident may not carry sufficient information to identify thecall as a Major Incident the incident commander of the first attendance will assess thesituation and report. This message will include the phrase INITIATE MAJORINCIDENT PROCEDURE.

The incident commander of the first attendance will take all measures necessary to:

Assess the effectiveness of fire fighting or other measures carried outbefore his/her arrival.

Identify the risks associated with the location including those detailsheld on the Brigades database.

Conduct a dynamic Risk Assessment to ensure the safety of allresponding personnel within the scene of operation.

Form a plan of action to deal with the developing situation.

Decide on appropriate additional resources.

Take effective command and issue instructions to effect the plan ofaction.

As soon as practicable, establish an Incident Command System toensure the safety of personnel and control of the incident.

Maintain operational command of the fire fighting and rescue operationswithin the inner cordon.

Evaluate the situation and any potential for development, preparing to

brief a more senior officer on the incident.

Liaise with other agency commanders at the earliest opportunity andprovide an incident and safety briefing.

The Ambulance Service

The first ambulance or paramedic response vehicle may arrive on scene before theAmbulance Incident Officer (AIO). The following procedures should be adopted:

Report arrival on scene to the Emergency Control Centre.

Use appropriate Personal Protective Equipment.



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Confirm incident appears to be a Major Incident and declare as such.

Provide Ambulance control with a detailed situation report ( METHANEis the Ambulance Mnemonic and is similar to CHALETS See page14).

Liaise with other emergency service incident officers.

Identify and establish the following in liaison with other emergencyresponding agencies.

i) Access / Egressii) Ambulance Parking Pointiii) Ambulance Control Pointiv) Triage Area

v) Casualty Clearing Stationvi) Ambulance Loading Point

Do not attempt rescue or treatment of casualties

Request ambulance/medical resources required pending the arrival ofthe Ambulance Incident Officer (AIO) who should be briefed on arrival.

The attendant of the first crew or first responder on the scene will act asthe Ambulance Incident Officer until relieved by a nominated SeniorOfficer.

Ambulance Incident Officer (AIO)

The AIO on arrival at the scene must:-

Report their arrival immediately to Joint Emergency Control Centre.

Use appropriate Personal Protective Equipment including high visibilityjacket marked Incident Officer.

Make an initial assessment and pass a situation report to theEmergency Control Centre using a METHANE report giving thefollowing additional information.

The nature of injuries to the casualties.

Advice as to whether a mobile medical team is required.

The number of additional resources required at the incident.

Establish the ambulance control point as close as operationally possibleto the other emergency services control vehicles and test radiocommunication with the Joint Emergency Control Centre.



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Establish through the Police the location of the: -

Ambulance loading point(s).

Ambulance marshalling / parking areas and agree access routes.

Triage area and casualty clearing station. Equipment point.

Body collection point through liaison with the Police IncidentOfficer.

Confirm evacuation route with the Police and Fire Brigade IncidentOfficers.

Control all ambulances and ambulance service personnel at the scene.

Keep a record of total number of casualties removed and the hospitals

to which they have been taken, in liaison with the Ambulance Parkingand Loading Officer.

Liaise closely with the Medical Incident Officer to ensure effectivedeployment of ambulance and medical resources.

Consider appointing Ambulance Safety Officer.

Consider appointing a Media Officer.

Attend any meetings of the Tactical Co-ordination Group (Silver).

Once the casualty evacuation procedures have been completed ensurethe Joint Emergency Control centre is informed for onward transmissionto the relevant receiving and support hospitals.

Medical Incident Officer (MIO)

A Medical Incident Officer will be available via the Joint Emergency Control Centre.These will be taken from hospitals or BASICS doctors or MIMMS trained AmbulanceStaff.

The request for a Medical Incident Officer will be via the EmergencyControl Centre.

Only in exceptional circumstances will Ambulance Transport be usedfor transfer of the Medial Incident Officer to the scene of a MajorIncident. The identified Medical incident Officer will be expected to usetheir own transport.

On arrival at the scene locate the Ambulance Control Point and theAmbulance Incident Officer.



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Use appropriate Personal Protective Equipment including high visibilityjacket marked Medical Incident Officer

If a Mobile Medical Team has not already been requested liaise with theAmbulance Incident Officer to obtain these services.

Assume command of all Medical staff at the scene.

Ensure, via the Emergency Control Centre, that receiving hospitals aregiven an initial situation report using the METHANE reporting criteriaincluding any additional medical requirements.

If not already established decide with the Ambulance Incident Officerthe location for the triage area and the Casualty Clearing Station.

Brief any medical team attending the scene with particular attention tosafety aspects.

Ensure, via the Emergency Control Centre, that receiving hospitals aregiven regular updates regarding progress of the incident using theMETHANE reporting procedure.

If possible attend any meetings of the Tactical Co-ordinating Group(Silver). If unable to attend ensure that the Ambulance Incident Officeris updated with the current situation.

Primary Care Trust response.

Primary Care Community response will be co-ordinated by the PrimaryCare Trusts. A group of appropriately trained BASICS GeneralPractitioner first responders will be alerted by the Ambulance Serviceand directed to the scene as required.

The Primary Care Trusts contract with the Health Protection AgencysChemical Department from Guys and St Thomas Hospital in London

provides chemical and toxicological advice to the local Health Service.They provide a 24 hour service which, through joint working, isavailable to all agencies of the LRF.

Local Authority Incident Officer (LAIO)

The role of the LAIO is: -

To liaise with the Emergency Services and advise them on the supportimmediately available from local authorities.

To co-ordinate Local Authority personnel and resources at the scene.



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To call forward Local Authority services as required.

To pass situation reports via the Local Authority Incident Room.

To maintain a log of all requests, communications and decisions.

To maintain a Health and Safety log for all members of the LocalAuthority and contractors called to the scene

To ensure all workers called to the scene receive a Health and Safetybriefing before commencing work.

Environment Agency

The role of the Environment Agency Site Controller or first staff to arrive at the sceneis:

To liaise with the emergency services and advise them / obtain adviceon the environmental impact of the incident and the support availablefrom the Environment Agency.

To ensure appropriate steps are being taken to prevent or minimisedamage to the environment.

To co-ordinate Environment Agency Operational response at the scene.

To decide on appropriate additional resources.

To pass situation reports to the Area Base Controller (EnvironmentAgency Tactical Control based at Area Office).

To maintain a log of all requests, communications and decisions.



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COMMAND AND CONTROL

Initial control

It is possible that early on in the incident members of one service will spontaneouslycarry out tasks normally the responsibility of another. On notification of an incidenteach agency must ensure sufficient staff arrive so that each service can establishunequivocal command and control of the functions for which it is normallyresponsible.

Inter-agency resources

Any service may request the temporary assistance of personnel and equipment ofanother. In these circumstances, while the supporting service will relinquish

operational control of those resources to the other service for the duration of the task,it will nevertheless keep overall command of its personnel and equipment at all times.For example, the Wiltshire Fire Brigade at a rescue operation may request theassistance of police officers. These officers will come under the temporaryoperational control of the Senior Fire Officer.

Where one agency uses personnel from another the Health and Safety of thosepersonnel become the responsibility of the agency receiving those services.Personnel from one service who help another in this way should only be given tasksfor which they are not only trained but also competent to carry out. (They must notbe used to supplement the other service in a potentially dangerous situation.) For

example, police officers may be directed to implement cordons or become stretcher-bearers to release fire fighters for rescue work. However, they should not undertakehazardous rescue work themselves.

Under no circumstances should personnel be allowed to carry out functions foranother service to the detriment of the primary role and responsibilities of thatindividual.

General Command and Control

In pre-planned public order events the Police make extensive use of the Gold, Silver

and Bronze structure. The nature of these events involves extensive pre-planningduring which any differences will be dealt with as they affect other services.

At the outset and before a formal structure is established, it is important that thesenior officers of each service on scene liaise with each other. This will be thefoundation upon which all later meetings will be based.

Command should be exercised from the most suitable points to effectively direct thejoint response of all the emergency services and ensure continual liaison.Fundamental to successful control and co-ordination of a major incident will be liaisonof all emergency and rescue/support services. This will require a recognised and

easily understood structure, based on three levels of command, which can be applied



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to each Emergency/Agency Service. These are known as Strategic, Tactical andOperational or Gold, Silver and Bronze. It should be understood that the titles do notconvey seniority of service or rank, but depict the function. As senior managersarrive, they will be assigned functions within this structure. The roles of each can bedescribed as follows:-

Strategic (Gold)

The Strategic Commander (Gold) is in overall charge of their respective service,responsible for formulating the strategy for the incident. Each Strategic Commanderhas overall command of the resources of their own organisation but will delegatetactical decisions to their respective silver commanders.

At the outset of the incident Gold will determine the strategy and record a strategystatement. This will need to be monitored and subjected to ongoing review. All such

decisions should be recorded in a Policy Document.

It will be necessary for the individual Gold commanders to meet together as aStrategic Co-ordinating Group. The group, which will be chaired by the PoliceGold Commander, will consider strategic issues relevant to the incident andnot the tactical issues that will be dealt with by Silver. However Gold andSilver Commanders will need to be in frequent contact throughout the incident.

It is important that at an early stage the Strategic Co-ordinating Group determinesmembership, operating protocol and fixed agenda items.

In addition Gold will ensure that sufficient support and resources are available at theincident scene and maintain a strategic overview. It may provide liaison with centralgovernment and other bodies as appropriate.

Joint Health Advisory Cell (JHAC)

In the event of a Chemical, Biological, Radiological or Nuclear (CBRN) incident, theChief Police Officer will call for the establishment of the Joint Health Advisory Cell,which will advise the strategic co-ordinating group on the impact on the population ofthe incident and its health consequences.

The Joint Health Advisory Cell is co-ordinated by the on-call Primary Care Trust. ThePrimary Care Trusts Director of Public Health will chair the Joint Health AdvisoryCell. A Consultant in Communicable Disease Control from the Health ProtectionAgency will be a core member of the group providing specific technical and clinicaladvice.

Other members of the Joint Health Advisory Cell will be drawn from:- Local Authority Environmental Health Officers- Environment Agency- Ambulance Service- Department of Environment Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA)- Department of Environment Transport and Local Regions (DETLR)



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- Health Protection Agency Chemical Department (formerly CIRS)

And in the event of a terrorist incident- Military Medical Adviser- HPA Emergency Response Division- Military Chemical and Biological Centre (Qinetiq).

Tactical (Silver)

Tactical Commanders (Silver) will attend the scene or nearby, take charge and beresponsible for formulating the tactics to be adopted by their service to achieve thestrategy set by Gold. The Tactical Commander should not become personallyinvolved with activities close to the incident but remain detached. The TacticalCommander attends the tactical co-ordinating group meetings as the servicerepresentative. The Police Tactical Commander will normally chair meetings albeit

that, for example, the Fire Tactical Commander is in charge in a fire situation.

Where needs dictate due to the circumstances of the incident, and there is arequirement for the respective commanders to be elsewhere, a competent andempowered representative will perform the liaison role.

In the event of a chemical incident, specialist advice may be required at the tacticallevel that will be provided by the Health Protection Agency Chemical Department.Depending on the scale of the incident, the on-call Primary Care Trust may establishan incident control for the local health service to co-ordinate the hospital andcommunity input.

Operational (Bronze)

The Operational Commanders (Bronze) will control and deploy the resources of theirrespective service within a geographical sector or specific role and implement thetactics defined by the Tactical Commander.

As the incident progresses and more resources attend the Rendezvous Point, thelevel of supervision will increase in proportion. As senior managers arrive they will beassigned functions within the Silver and Bronze structure. The initial Police IncidentOfficer will remain with his/her supervisor to maintain continuity of policy and to act as

staff officer. The Fire Brigade will re-deploy their officer to other duties within thecommand team therebymaintaining continuity. It is important that the IncidentCommander wears an identifiable tabard and passes it on to his/her successor.

The emergency services will appoint a number of Bronze officers who will performvarious supervisory functions depending on the areas of operation designated bySilver.

By using this universal structure the emergency services will be able to communicatewith each other and understand each others functions and authority. (See Figure 4below). This figure is a simple model of what might occur at a Major Incident. It is by

no means definitive.



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Wiltshire and Swindon LRF Joint Incident Procedures Guide.Page 28 of 84

Fig. 4 - Major Incident Schematic


Jo

MarshallingPoint

R.V.P.

Evacuation

J

WindDirection

Joint IncidentControl Post

Police, Fire,Ambulance and L.A

EvacuationAssem ybl

Point Inner CordonFire Fighting

Helipad

1st Aid &

Triage

CasualtyClearing/

Body Collection

AmbulanceLoading

PointCasevac

Exit only

AccompaniedFriends and Relatives

Site

DecontaminationUnit

ParkingArea MassCasualtyCentre

Traffic Diversions/ Filterapproaching

RVP

LocalAuthorityRest Centre

Media Centre


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SCENE MANAGEMENT

When considering control of the incident ground the Fire Incident Commander will inparticular consider the safety of Fire personnel, members of other emergency

services, the general public and other voluntary agencies in attendance.

Cordons may be employed as an effective method of controlling resources and thesafety of individuals.

In order to ensure the health and safety of all personnel moving within an innercordon (area of immediate operational activity) the Fire Brigade will operate anIncident Command System and take the responsibility for the safety of personnelwithin that area.

General

Collective management at the scene of a Major Incident is integral to the success ofeach Emergency Service fulfilling its primary roles and responsibilities. Officersinitially deployed from each Service should establish scene management as a jointprocess as soon as is practicable. Every effort should be made to ensure that theIncident Officers (Silver Commanders) hold an initial briefing at the earliestopportunity. This will enable IncidentOfficers to determine the tactical response forthe incident, to exchange operational information and anticipate requirements.

EFFICIENT SCENE MANAGEMENT CAN ONLY BE ACHIEVED THROUGHLIAISON. THEREFORE, EXCHANGE OF INFORMATION FROM THE ONSET OFTHE INCIDENT IS VITAL. ONGOING JOINT ASSESSMENTS AND BRIEFINGSMUST BE HELD PERIODICALLY TO ENSURE A RESPONSE TO NEWDEVELOPMENTS, ESCALATION OR CHANGES TO OPERATIONALREQUIREMENTS.

Cordons

Inner, outer and traffic cordons will be established by the Emergency Services inaccordance with their own references, acting together in consultation.

Inner cordon

The inner cordon denotes the area of immediate operational activity. For the FireBrigade it denotes the scenes of operation which includes the hazardous area andrescue zone. For the Police this area will be the potential scene of crime from whichevidence and witnesses may emerge.

In a majority of circumstances it will be the Fire Brigades responsibility at MajorIncidents to ensure that only authorised persons are permitted within the inner cordonarea. The Wiltshire Fire Brigade is responsible for Health and Safety managementwithin the inner cordon and will deal with access control procedures to this area. This

is only applicable where a Health and Safety issue applies. Thereafter the Police willtake operational control of the access point.



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All personnel working within the inner cordon will have to pass through the FireBrigade or Police entry control point. Whilst working in the area they will be suitablyidentified and anyone without this identification will be removed. It is essential onleaving the inner cordon the necessary documentation procedures are carried out.

Where the danger of a Chemical, Biological, Radiological or Nuclear agent (CBRN)exists the Police will consult fully with the Wiltshire Fire Brigade and the WiltshirePrimary Care Trust, taking full cognisance of the expert advice that is available tothem. (See the Wiltshire and Swindon LRF Hazardous Material Incidents Guide).

Outer cordon

The outer cordon seals off an extensive controlled area surrounding the inner cordonin which the responding agencies are able to work unhindered. The Police willcontrol all access using access control procedures, similar to the Fire Brigade.

Persons requesting access will be vetted to ensure unauthorised persons do nothave access to the danger area and crime scene. It is imperative that persons calledto the scene are able to identify themselves and who has requested their attendance.Contact should then be made with the appropriate Agency Control vehicle before theindividual is allowed to proceed.

Traffic cordon

Deployed at or beyond the outer cordon preventing vehicle access to the areasurrounding the scene.

Cordons will be placed according to circumstances and may need to be movedduring the course of the event. This is particularly the case where a toxic plumeexists. The Local Authority will be able to assist in permanent cordon deployment.

The Police Helicopter may be able to assist in cordon deployment however this willnot be its primary function.

The establishment of suitable access and egress routes must be considered at theearliest opportunity.

Inner cordon control points

The Fire Brigade is responsible for safety management of all personnel within theinner cordon where a Health and Safety issue applies. In order to ensure the safetyof non Fire Brigade personnel, they will be issued with suitable identification, a safetybriefing and a record made of all personnel prior to entering the area. The record willbe retained and may be required in any subsequent Police enquiry. Persons who donot have a role or are wearing inappropriate clothing or identification, will be directedto leave the cordon, the Police will assist as necessary.

Non emergency service personnel providing assistance to either the medical or Fire

Brigade response, should be directed to the Fire command vehicle before beingallowed access to the inner cordon.



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In terrorist or suspected terrorist incidents it is a criminal offence to contravene aprohibition or restriction imposed under the Terrorism Act 2000. This may wellinclude the crossing of a Police cordon. (See section on terrorism).



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Scene access control

A scene access control centre must be established outside the outer cordon and asfar as possible in an area adjacent to the Rendezvous Point. The centre, which will

be under the command of a Police Cordons Officer, must be clearly identifiable tothose wishing to gain entry past the outer cordon and if necessary an approach routemust be established and sign posted.

The Cordons Officer will be responsible for checking the authenticity of and issuingpasses to non-emergency service personnel whose presence is required within theouter cordon and beyond. Such persons should be directed to the Cordons Officer inthe first instance by the authority requesting their attendance. Once satisfied as totheir credentials the CordonsOfficer will issue the appropriate pass and escort themto the Joint Incident Control Post (JICP).

The Cordons Officer must maintain a record of all persons who have been directed tothem in order to gain access. The Cordons Officer must establish a link with the JointIncident Control Post for this purpose as soon as possible. The record of personsseeking admittance must be retained as it may become subject of further policeenquiries at a later date. The Cordons Officer should establish communication linkswith the Joint Incident Control Post by way of telephone, radio and/or FAX.

It must be emphasised that the role of the Cordons Officer is to facilitate entry to theJoint Incident Control Post for non-emergency service personnel whose presence isrequired beyond the outer cordon. It does not replace the arrangements in place inrelation to control of and entry to the inner cordon by either the Fire Brigade or Police.

Inner cordons are used to control access to the immediate scene of operations.Access to the area controlled by the inner cordon, which by definition is a high hazardzone, should be restricted to the minimum numbers required for work to beundertaken safely and effectively. Personnel should only enter when they havereceived a full briefing and been allocated specific tasks.

The Incident Command System (ICS), operated by the Fire Brigade, offers thestructure to support the management and control of the inner cordon.

Control/command vehicles - Joint Incident Control Post

Purpose

The Fire Brigade, Police and Ambulance Service control/command vehicles will formthe focus from which the Major Incident will be managed. These vehicles, togetherwith those of the local authority and other supporting agencies, will be located closeto one another and be known collectively as the Joint Incident Control Post. TheTactical Commanders (Silvers) may jointly exercise their authority from this point ina co-ordinated manner.

To avoid confusion where a service mobilises more than one control/commandvehicle to the scene, only one of these will perform the control function at the JointIncident Control Post. It will be clearly distinguishable, by using its blue flashing light,



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from other similar vehicles and be the only reference point from which the Silversoperate.

The importance of this joint control function should not be underestimated. The

experience of other disasters has demonstrated the benefits derived by theestablishment of close contact between the emergency services and other agenciesinvolved in the management of the incident.



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The Police Incident Officer, together with the Incident Officers of the other agencies,will be responsible for confirming or amending the siting of the control / commandvehicles and will establish liaison between them.

The command / control vehicles of the emergency services should be positionedbetween the inner and outer cordons.

Although vehicles should be positioned close enough to ensure efficient liaison andco-ordination, their proximity must not impair good radio communications. About 10metres separation is ideal. A radio test at an early opportunity is recognised as bestpractice.

Siting of vehicles

The officer-in-charge of the first command / control vehicle on scene should make

allowance for the siting of the other agency command vehicles. The site should:

a) Have enough space to accommodate all anticipated agency mobilecontrol centres.

b) Be away from the hazards of the scene but close enough to maintaincontrol over it.

c) Be chosen carefully as relocation may prove extremely difficult.

Points (b) and (c) are important. Convenience of access must be

secondary to safety.

Ideally the site should be served with good access, lighting, toilets and havetelephone facilities close by. Realistically, this will be unusual in operational terms. Awide thoroughfare or surface car park may be used as the Joint Incident Control Postin the absence of more suitable accommodation.

The advice of the Fire Brigade in matters of Health and Safety in connection with theplacement of the Joint Incident Control Post will be sought by the other emergencyagencies. This advice may well be extended if the incident involves chemicals orother hazardous materials. The choice of the site would then be influenced by wind

direction and gradient and should be selected in consultation with the Fire Brigadeshazardous materials officers.

The attendance of essential staff from non-emergency agencies (for example, publicutilities, voluntary groups, technical specialists and, in some cases, representatives ofrecognised business / community groups) requesting entry at the cordons must befacilitated at all times providing the appropriate identification checks are made. Thereare recent cases which underline the importance of scene security for all agenciesinvolved in the response. It should be noted that unauthorised access to the site of aMajor Incident could jeopardise both the rescue and investigation. Any difficultieswith identification should be referred immediately to the appropriate control vehicle at

the Joint Incident Control Post.



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Fire Brigade/Ambulance Marshalling equipment and loading point

In consultation with the Fire Brigade Tactical Commander, the Police Incident Officerwill agree the location and the traffic management of the Marshalling area. Eachemergency service will appoint a Marshalling officer for the vehicles and resourcesattending the incident. Likewise, in consultation with the Ambulance Incident Officer,the co-ordinating Police Incident Officer will agree siting for the ambulance parkingand loading points, the triage/casualty clearing station, the equipment point and thestretcher bearer assembly point(s).

Arrival of senior officers /transfer of command

Senior officers arriving at their respective control / command vehicles are to establishcontact with their incident commanders. Notification of change of Tactical Command

can be formally carried out at the Silver Co-ordinating Group meeting.

Identification

To aid identification, the blue, red or green identifying lights on each of the maincontrol vehicles of the emergency services will be switched on. The re-circulatinglights of all other vehicles must be switched off, except during incidents on openmotorways or unless they are necessary elsewhere to avoid accidents and for safetypurposes.

Provision of liaison officers between emergency services

Liaison officers from other non-emergency agencies may be appointed as required toattend either or both Gold and Silver. Great care must be taken to avoid duplicationof liaison officers and the confusion it can cause.



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LOCAL AUTHORITY ASSISTANCE

Response

The main functions of a Local Authority during a Major Incident are to maintainexisting services to the community in addition to providing requested support to theemergency services. Wiltshire County Council employ an emergency planning unitand Swindon Borough Council employ an emergency management officer whoperform the functions of emergency planning and are responsible for preparing theLocal Authority response to civil emergencies.

Following the declaration of a Major Incident, the Local Authorities will initially act insupport of the emergency services and usually have the longest involvement. TheLocal Authoritys response will be flexible and in proportion to those resourcesavailable to them at the time. They will be alerted by the emergency service initiating

the Major Incident procedure. Key Local Authority staff will then implement the LocalAuthority emergency plan. In the long-term the Local Authority may well assumeresponsibility for the recovery period.

Notification

Local Authorities take time to mobilise and therefore early notification is required.They need to be updated constantly as the incident progresses so that their responseis measured and appropriate. Good liaison between the emergency services and theLocal Authority, particularly at the scene, are essential and will be enhanced by thepresence of the Local Authoritys Control Vehicle (or other facility) at the Joint

Incident Control Post.

Involvement

The Local Authority involvement during the recovery period and return to normalitymay be prolonged and extensive. It may include:

Rehabilitation of the community.

Social support.

Welfare arrangements

Emergency finance.

Emergency housing.

Emergency feeding.

The provision of equipment and staff.



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The provision of suitable premises for some of the functions describedelsewhere in this Guide including Temporary Mortuaries and Mediacentres.

Contact between the emergency services, voluntary agencies and the localauthorities before, during and after incidents to establish liaison and the recognitionof their individual roles, is not only recommended, but is also essential for asuccessful and professional return to normality.

Technical assistance

The Local Authority is able to supply considerable assistance to deal with particularproblems, such as:

The provision of technical advice and resources;

Environmental Health management;

Logistical support;

Long term management for restoration of normality.

Support Functions

Local Authorities (see figure 5).

Health Service (see figure 7).



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Figure 5Local Authority Support Functions(County, District and Borough Level)

LRF / Strategic Group

LOCAL AUTHORITYEmergency Planning UnitEnvironmental ServicesEnvironmental Health

Communications

Social Services

LoInc

VoluntaryAgencies e.g.

RAYNET

Military Voluntary AidSocieties (VAS)

Multi Repres



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Health Service Support Functions

The Primary Care Trust emergency planning function is based at Kennet and NorthWiltshire Primary Care Trust. This function is shared between all four Primary Care

Trusts in relation to planning and general maintenance of the responsibilities.

Response

In the event of an incident, the Primary Care Trust Chief Executive who is on-call willprovide the Health Service input at a Strategic (Gold) level on behalf of any of thePrimary Care Trusts.

The on-call Primary Care Trust will also co-ordinate the Health Service response forthe county.

Notification

The local Primary Care Trusts on-call system can be activated by any off theagencies via an emergency contact number.

Health Service Provision

Triage and treatment of casualties at the scene

Transport to acute hospitals

Medical Treatment at Hospital

Advice on impact to the health of the population Psychological support

Community Service Provision: -- General Practice- District Nursing- Replacement medication- Medical support at rest centres- Minor injuries care

Support acute hospitals to clear beds

Technical assistance

Clinical and technical advice from the Wiltshire Health Protection Team

Chemical and toxicological advice via the Health Protection AgencyChemical Department.



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Fig 6

KENNET &NORTH

WILTSHIREPCT

WESTWILTSHIRE

PCT

SOUTHWILTSHIRE

PCT

SW

AVON, GLOUCESTERSHIRE &WILTSHIRE

STRATEGIC HEALTHAUTHORITY

PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENTAND DEVELOPMENT

HEALTHPROTECTION

AGENCY

AmbulanceService

Blue Light NHSResponse

RUHAcute

Hospital

SDHAcute

Hospital H

WILTSHIREHEALTH

PROTECTIONTEAM

Key:Black Organisations with statutory functionGreen Expert advice and support



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Fig 7 Health Service Support Functions

LRFSTRATEGIC

On call PCT

Co-ordinate OverallHealth Service Response

PCTsPrimary Care ServicesCommunity Services &

HospitalsMinor Injuries,

Medication Replacement,General Practice &

Pharmacy

Acute Hospital

Major ReceivingHospitals

Ambulance Service

Co-ordination at scenefor the Health Service

Wiltshire HealthProtection Team

Clinical & TechnicalAdvice

Key:

Black Organisations with statutory functionGreen Expert advice and support



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CO-ORDINATING GROUPS

General

The formation of both a Strategic and Tactical Co-ordinating Group has been of greatvalue at all recent Major Incidents. The initial supervising officers of each of theservices will initially be fully occupied with their own sphere of activity and there willinevitably be some delay in a co-ordinating group being set up, but this should bekept to a minimum. In describing the functions of the co-ordinating groups, we wishto emphasise that:

It is essential that the first supervising officers on scene from each of theemergency agencies liaise closely with each other at the earliest opportunity.

Those officers may be invited to the first Tactical Co-ordinating Group meeting to

describe their initial decisions or will brief their representative on the group before themeeting.

It is important, when agencies send a representative to either a Strategic or TacticalCo-ordinating Group that the person has sufficient authority to guarantee that thefacilities they offer on behalf of their organisation will be delivered. It is useful if onlyone person from each organisation attends and the chair ensures the meetings arenot unduly long so that the continued strategy and tactics are passed to others in thechain of command.

It is not intended that the co-ordinating groups should in any way assume theauthority and responsibilities of individual services in the discharge of their respectiveand sometimes statutory duties. The Tactical Co-ordinating Group should not bemistaken for, or interfere with, the Joint Incident Control Post, which is merely thephysical location of service control vehicles near the scene. These meeting shouldbe held in isolation from the vehicles that make up the Joint Incident Control Post.

Representatives

Typically, co-ordinating groups will consist of:

The Strategic (Gold) Group

ThePolice (normally chair the meeting)

Overall Incident Commander.

Administrative support.

TheFire Brigade

A Chief Fire Officer or an appropriate representative.



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TheAmbulance Service

Chief Executive or Director of Operations.

The Local Authority

The Chief Executive or an appropriate representative.

Primary Care Trust

The on call Primary Care Trust Chief Executive or an appropriaterepresentative with technical and administrative support.

Media Officer

A Senior Media Officer (possibly the designated Police Media Spokesperson)will be nominated for the purpose of strategic direction relating to mediaprotocol. For further information please see the LRF document MediaGuidance.

Joint Health Advisory Cell

The Joint Health Advisory Cell will be called by the Chief Police officer onadvice from the Primary Care Trust, particularly if the incident has aChemical, Biological, Radiological or Nuclear aspect to it.

Others

Additional representation will depend on the scale of the incident. It may benecessary to have an inner core of permanent members and an outer groupof advisors, specialists and others who could be called upon to attend asnecessary.

The Tactical (Silver) Group

Police (normally chair the meeting)

Police Incident Officer;

Senior Investigating Officer, where applicable;

Administrative support.

Fire

Fire Brigade Incident Commander or Liaison Officer,

Scientific advisor, where applicable.



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Ambulance

Ambulance Incident Officer or Liaison Officer

Local Authority

A senior representative of the local authority.

Health Service

Specialist Advice

It should be noted that for the Health Service there is likely to be a Tactical ControlUnit at a separate location to deal with the co-ordination of local Health Serviceissues.

Media Officer

A senior Media Officer from one of the respective responding agencies will co-ordinate the media response on behalf of the Tactical Commanders utilising thestrategic media policy. This senior media officer will also co-ordinate the mediaofficers of the other agencies involved and will be available to the Tactical Co-ordinating Group. For further information with regard to media issues referenceshould be made in the first instance to the LRF document Media Guidance.

The Tactical Commander should avoid becoming the spokesperson for their

organisation. The Tactical Commander should look at an early stage to appoint amedia spokesperson particularly for the blue light services. An officer wearinguniform is preferable.

Others

Additional representation will depend on the scale of the incident. From experience itmay be necessary to have an inner core of permanent members and an outer groupof advisors, specialists and others who could be called upon to attend as necessary.Large groups have proven to be unwieldy in dealing with issues at a strategic level.

Location of meetings

The LRF will meet as the Strategic Co-ordinating Group whenever a Major Incidenthas been declared by any of the responding agencies. They will normally meet at theJoint Services Control Centre, Police Headquarters in accommodation alreadyidentified for the purpose. It is completely detached from the scene but has suitablecommunications and meeting facilities. (See Fig. 8 below). Alternatively if PoliceHeadquarters are, for whatever reason, not available, a similar arrangement withsuitable accommodation has been identified and is available at Westlea PoliceStation, The Chesters, Swindon. (See Fig. 9 below).

Contact details for these locations are published in the Wiltshire County Councildocument Emergency Contact Directory.



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Meetings for the Tactical Co-ordinating Group (Silver) will normally be called in thefirst instance by the Police. Subsequent meetings will be dictated to as a result ofdecisions taken at the first meeting.

The Police will seek to establish the machinery for co-ordination and organise theappropriate facilities. These include the provision and siting of suitableaccommodation for meetings of the co-ordinating group, necessary communicationsand basic administration facilities. This may be achieved through liaison with theLocal Authority Incident Officer (LAIO) at the scene.

For convenience the Tactical Co-ordinating Group (Silver) should initially meet closeto the scene; it may be moved to premises which are better served, although furtherfrom the scene, as operations progress.



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Figure 8 The Strategic Co Ordinating Group at Police Headquarters.

NB. There is no permitted access to the 1st Floor of this building by the Strategic CoOrdinating Group

Night

Kitchen

Foyer

RestRoom

FemaleWC

FemaleLockerRoom

MaleLockerRoom

MaleWC

Police

LocalAuthorities

Ambulance& PrimaryCare Trusts

Fire

An Other

MultiAgency

StrategicLocal

ResilienceForum

EquipmentRooms only



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Figure 9 The Strategic Co-ordinating Group at Westlea, Swindon.

KEY:

Fire Liaison Officer

Fire Communications

Ambulance Liaison Officer

Ambulance Communications

Local Authority Liaison Officer

L.A.L.O. Communications

Emergency Planning Officer

EPO Communications

AN Other Liaison and Communications

Primary Care Trust

Fax MachineManager

Store

B.T.Telecom

Police GoldCommunications

Switchboard /Message Switch

RestRooms

1

1

2

2

1

2

2Major Incident

Conference Room

MajorIncidentStore

1

2

1

1

2

1

2

1

2

1

2

1

2



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Frequency of meetings

The Police incident officer will call an initial meeting of the Tactical Co-ordinatingGroup at the earliest reasonable opportunity. Subsequent meetings of this group can

be arranged at this first meeting or called by the Police Incident Officer at the requestof another member of the Group.

In general, the nature and difficulties of the operation will govern the frequency ofeither Strategic or Tactical meetings.

Tasks for consideration by the co-ordinating groups

Strategic

The agenda for the Strategic Group Meetings will be decided by the group at the time

and will depend upon the type and scale of the incident. There are generic issuesthat will be present in any Major Incident and the Group should decide on standingitems at its first meeting. It is important that this Group focuses on Strategic issuesonly.

Tactical

The agenda should deal with the developing situation and cover areas that affect anyof the other agencies. The meeting should also deal with the implementation of theStrategic decisions from Gold. Some standing items, such as safety, situationreports, the establishment of priorities and the media will always be necessary.

Safety

At incidents concerned with fire, the danger of fire, or involving rescue, the FireBrigade will be responsible for all immediate matters of Health and Safety within theinner cordon. See Section 13 for further details.

Situation reports

Each service should briefly describe the situation as it affects its own operations and,

if necessary, mention those matters for which it requires the assistance or co-operation of others. Decisions should be disseminated to local controls and to theStrategic Co-ordinating Group.

Priorities

Priorities are essential to create a cohesive joint strategy or tactics. This will indicatehow the available resources can be deployed in the most effective and efficientmanner.



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Each service will have objectives to meet within its own area of responsibility. It isimportant to establish which of these should have priority at the particular stage theincident has reached. In that way, inter-service difficulties may be avoided and eachmay concentrate upon those actions which contribute most to the success of the

operation.

Future developments

Both Strategic and Tactical Groups should give consideration to the requirements oflater phases of the operation, including the identification of actions that need to betaken in advance. For example, if heavy lifting equipment is likely to be needed, itmay be necessary to identify and secure roads to the scene, widening access andstrengthening surfaces and so on.

Minutes

Minutes, or a note of decisions taken, must be kept of all meetings of the co-ordinating groups and at the conclusion of the meeting the chairperson confirms thedecisions taken and those responsible for implementing those actions. Minutes or anote of decisions taken and personal notes, should provide an aide memoire of thecontinuing overall progress of the operation. They will provide a perspective againstwhich decisions on priorities can be made.

A Major Incident will necessarily result in an investigation as to its cause and quitepossibly a formal inquest, inquiry or criminal trial. The actions of the senior officers ofthe emergency agencies will be of considerable interest. Therefore, notes will beinvaluable and will, insofar as they are relevant, be disclosable, that is, madeavailable in subsequent proceedings.

Nothing in this section detracts from the fact that the first co-ordinating group meetingmay take place between the supervisors of the initial response vehicles. This willusually set the tone for the remaining meetings. This initial and informal liaison is ofparamount importance.

Media liaison

In any dealings with the media reference should in the first instance be made to theWiltshire Local Resilience Forum document Media Guidance.

The Police Incident Officer will make arrangements, through the appropriate MediaOfficer and with the assistance of the Local Authority, for a Media Centre or, whereappropriate, a Media Briefing Point and for the attendance of the mediaspokespersons of the respective responding agencies.

The Media Briefing Centre or Point should be established in close proximity to themain area of operations as a holding area for accredited media personnel to receiveinitial briefings. This will, however, be outside the outer cordon for the incident. The

Media Centre Manager will be responsible for co-ordinating facilities available to themedia and the opportunity for press conferences.



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Media Spokespersons from the Responding Emergency Agencies should bemobilised to attend the Media Briefing Centre at an early stage.

Ideally, no statement concerning the incident should be made initially to the press

without prior agreement of the Tactical Co-ordinating Group. The Media officer fromeach of the agencies will consult closely, and ensure a co-ordinated approach ismade to the media. An initial holding statement should be released by theappropriate Emergency Service until the Media Co-ordination Group has been set upat the designated Media Briefing Centre.

Casualty figures should only be released through the Police Press Liaison Officer onthe authority of the Police Strategic Commander who has been in contact with theCasualty Bureau.

Media Access

Incident Officers must jointly decide throughout the incident, areas to which themedia DO NOT have access, these may include:

Inner Cordon.

Casualty Clearing Station.

Survivor Reception Centre.

Every effort should be made to allow eventual access to all areas; however,the following criteria must be taken into account:

Operational efficiency of all services must not be impaired.

Preservation of the scene must be maintained.

The need for privacy of casualties and relatives must be respected.

Access to certain areas may need to be controlled and supervised.

The area must be safe for media personnel.

The Police will be responsible for the security of buildings and areas that may attractmedia attention for example, hospitals, survivor reception centres, evacuee restcentres, body collecting points, mortuaries and friends and relatives receptioncentres, in co-operation with the host organisation.

Visits by VIPs

It is not uncommon for VIPs to make visits to the scene of a disaster, to hospitals tovisit the injured and to survivors. These visits place additional strain on the operationin terms of security, public order, increased media attention and interruption tonormal rescue functions. The Strategic Co-ordinating Group will allocate theplanning and liaison role for the visits.

Whilst the Police will co-ordinate visits there is a need to liaise with the otherorganisations involved in the major incident. In particular it should be remembered

that it would be the appropriate Acute Trust and not the Health Protection Team thatwill deal with such visits on behalf of the Health Service.



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COMMUNICATIONS SYSTEMS

General

Currently within the County of Wiltshire and Borough of Swindon, each of theemergency services have entirely independent radio communications systems. Thatis not to say that they are totally incompatible but certain procedures need to beadopted to achieve mutual communication. It is useful to be aware of the varioustypes of communications employed by each constituent member.

At present only the Police have migrated to the Terrestrial Trunked Radio Standard(TETRA) digital system. It is not certain when or if the other Blue Light services willmigrate to this form of Communication. The Military have some TETRA capability.However it should be noted that in a Mutual Aid scenario, the Police can loan TETRAradios other agencies for the duration of the incident, at Silver and Bronze Command

level.

Warning

With the exception of the Police TETRA system no communications system issecure from eavesdroppers. Radio scanners capable of receiving fire,ambulance and local authority radio transmissions are readily available.Similarly, fax scanners can be quickly brought to the scene to interceptinformation transmitted between the services and agencies. This should beborne in mind when wording any transmission, including cellular telephoneconversations that may contain sensitive information.

Inter Agency Command Channel

The Police and the Fire Brigade command vehicles that attend the scene are eachequipped with a number of hand-held multi-channel UHF radios. These will operateon the inter-agency command channel using Channels * and * (National ChannelPlan). Please note that during 2006 the Police will no longer have thiscapability. These radios are intended for command use only by the respectiveservice tactical commanders for liaison purposes and not for general inter-serviceuse. The Police will issue radios to the other services, particularly the ambulance

service, at the scene. (See Fig. 10 below).

Wiltshire Fire Brigade

The command and mobilising system for the Fire Brigade is situated at the TriService Emergency Control Room based at Police Headquarters and is able todespatch fire service vehicles by using its computer mobilising system, UHF radios,paging and telephone systems as appropriate.

All Fire Brigade front-line appliances are equipped with VHF radios and have theability to communicate with the Brigade Control from anywhere in the area. The Fire

Brigade has hand held UHF personal radios available on all its front line appliancesand with officers together with an additional supply on command vehicles forcommand purposes.



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As well as main VHF radio, the Fire Brigade command vehicles also carry thefollowing communication facilities:

Field telephones for communication with the other emergency servicecontrol vehicles. This system is available for use at major incidents forliaison purposes and establishing communications with control vehicles.

Cellular telephones that are available for alternative communicationpurposes.

Cellular faxes.

All Major Incidents and incidents of note are monitored in the Brigade Control, whichalso deals with liaison and other issues specific to Major Incidents. The Centre isalso data linked to all command vehicles.

Wiltshire Ambulance Service

The Ambulance Service vehicles also have a variety of communications. Emergencyvehicles are fitted with VHF radios channelled into Central Ambulance Controlsituated at the Tri Service Emergency Control Centre at Police Headquarters,Devizes. The new generation communications feature some automatic functions.

Ambulance Incident Officers have a choice of equipment:-

Fixed and hand-held VHF radios.

Hand-held UHF radios for use at the scene.

Cellular telephones.

The Major Incident vehicle also has VHF, UHF and cellular facilities.

Access Overload Control (ACCOLC)

The ACCOLC system is a government authorised scheme whereby the majorportable telephone companies can reserve exclusive use of available channels forthe emergency services and local authorities at the scene of a Major Incident. Itallows for calls to be made without being interrupted by overloaded cellular networks.

This facility is expensive to implement and can cause inconvenience to normalsubscribers. Therefore it should only be initiated after careful consideration and onthe authority of the Police Strategic Commander who has raised the matter with theco-ordinating group. Calls should be as brief as possible.

All agencies should ensure that mobile telephones are correctly configured at all

times to ensure a full working capability at the time of a Major Incident.



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Local authority communications

Wiltshire Local Authorities have integral radio communications systems; however,these are not currently compatible with the emergency services systems. Where

communications are a particular difficulty all avenues of communication should beexplored. One such system is Satellite Communications and local authorities may beable to provide this through li

Documents

032. Wilts Swindon LRF Joint Procedures Guide