What is an Emergency Evacuation Plan Template?
An emergency evacuation plan template is a premade and reproducible document that aims to help in creating, managing, and implementing emergency evacuation procedures. It is usually developed by employers to easily inform employees of exit routes, designated safe areas, and the proper steps to take in case of different emergencies.
Most emergency evacuation plans come in a map format, showing escape routes, but they are to be used alongside a dedicated emergency evacuation plan checklist. This checklist will detail the necessary precautions to take and consider, as well as the proper safety procedures to always be aware of.
An emergency evacuation plan template in particular can streamline the process of preparing for emergencies, thus allowing you and your employees to minimize risk of injury or loss of life, reduce damage to property, and help the organization to quickly recover.
Why Use a Template for Emergency Evacuation Plans?
The basis of an emergency evacuation plan template is a checklist. Without an emergency evacuation plan checklist, creating, following, and implementing your emergency plan and maps can prove to be challenging. A checklist can also help ensure no step is missed both in the planning and execution.
Additionally, a digital checklist specifically can also be accessed anytime and anywhere, making it easy for you and your employees to always be aware and conscious of the proper safety emergency procedures. Using a checklist also makes it easier to properly brief and train employees on the proper emergency evacuation procedures.
An emergency evacuation plan template and its corresponding checklist is used in the following situations:
- Before, during, and after emergency evacuation plan training and drills simulating emergencies
- During the planning stages of a construction project
- Evacuating victims of natural disasters
- Avoiding harmful substances, equipment, and environments
What to Include in an Emergency Evacuation Plan Template
A general emergency evacuation plan template checklist will have fields for the following to help you create and manage your evacuation plan:
- List of evacuation officers and assistants
- Name and contact information of nearby emergency services
- Operational status of your emergency alert systems
- Contingency plans for broken or malfunctioning alert systems and devices
- Methods of communication
- Specific evacuation, entry, and exit instructions depending on your area
- Designated safe area or assembly point
- List of procedures to follow once you and your team have assembled in your safe area
At the end of the emergency evacuation plan checklist template, it is important to list down other adjustments to be made based on the answers to the previous fields. This includes double-checking if certain procedures need to be revised or added and if additional training needs to be provided.
For a workplace emergency evacuation plan template, there can also be additional fields for the right personnel to contact and coordinate with during evacuations and drills.
Here is an emergency evacuation plan sample report for reference:
How to Maintain Your Emergency Evacuation Plan Template
In situations where the building’s layout has changed, new equipment has been installed, or new hazards have been identified, it is important to keep your plan updated accordingly.
An outdated emergency evacuation plan template can be dangerous, as it may prove to be ineffective in an actual emergency, thus putting your staff at risk. A good rule of thumb is to review and update your evacuation plan at least once a year. However, you may need to update it more frequently if significant changes have occurred.
Some changes that need to be considered when updating your plan include:
- The building layout
- New equipment
- New hazards
- Changes to the emergency response team
Once you have identified the changes that need to be made, you should update the plan accordingly.
In addition to updating your emergency evacuation plan template, it is also essential to review and test it regularly. Regular testing, training, and review help ensure that the plan is effective and that everyone knows what to do in an emergency. Ideally, you must conduct a drill twice a year with an interval of every six months and training sessions around the same frequency. However, you may need to conduct drills more frequently if significant changes have occurred.
The best way to create, manage, and update your emergency evacuation plan template is by going digital. By digitizing your processes, you can better edit and update your plans, as all details will be stored in the cloud and easy to track. All edits will still be in the cloud should you choose so, giving you the option and flexibility to refer to them in case of changes.
FAQs about Emergency Evacuation Plan Templates
An evacuation plan is the list of procedures you will need to follow for an evacuation. Meanwhile, an evacuation checklist details the things you need to bring and prepare. Most evacuation plan checklists are also evacuation checklists already.
Anyone can use an emergency evacuation plan template, but ideally, only one or a few authorized personnel will manage it. This is to ensure that all information is not tampered with or changed suddenly. However, all employees of an organization must be trained on it.
