QHA_March 2018_Electronic_s
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FOCUS<br />
ARE YOUR EMERGENCY<br />
PROCEDURES<br />
GOLD MEDAL WORTHY?<br />
Three years in the planning and now with just a few<br />
short weeks to go before the Commonwealth Games<br />
commence, the excitement in Queensland is palpable.<br />
So too is the level of activity and preparation to ensure<br />
that everything is ready and running smoothly for the<br />
biggest international sporting event staged in Australia<br />
for a decade, and the largest ever hosted by the Gold<br />
Coast.<br />
With more than 6,600 athletes and team officials from<br />
70 Commonwealth nations and territories, 15,000<br />
volunteers and in excess of 100,000 visitors and media<br />
representatives expected to descend on the Gold<br />
Coast plus the 1.5 billion people that will tune in across<br />
the world to watch on TV, the success of this event is<br />
likely to be measured more by what doesn’t happen<br />
than by how many medals are won…<br />
Events with large groups of people necessitate specific<br />
safety requirements and the world will be watching<br />
to see how prepared we are. Not only do the sheer<br />
numbers of attendees pose a challenge to emergency<br />
responders but the event type, venue and location<br />
can present its own set of hazards,and safety is<br />
not something you want to assume is being done<br />
correctly.<br />
A carefully collaborated approach by QFES and<br />
thousands of man hours have gone into ensuring all<br />
competition venues and other important sites and<br />
precincts achieve building fire safety compliance,<br />
effectively covering the safety of the general public and<br />
athletes attending the Games. But what of the tens of<br />
thousands of room nights required for the event?<br />
There will be 100 per cent occupancy across the<br />
Gold Coast and event cities Brisbane, Cairns and<br />
Townsville, and acording to a recent media report,<br />
many Class Two buildings which cater for mainly<br />
permanent residents, are being increasingly used for<br />
short-term accommodation through sites like Airbnb<br />
without conforming to higher fire safety legislation.<br />
One of the important obligations of business owners,<br />
managers, and accommodation providers is to ensure<br />
that visitors, staff and occupants are safe in the event<br />
of an emergency. If it hasn’t been done already, now is<br />
the time to ensure that all safety features are compliant<br />
and maintained.<br />
In addition to the equipment, all employees must be<br />
trained in fire safety and understand the appointed<br />
evacuation strategy.<br />
Are evacuation routes clearly marked? In<br />
accommodation buildings, are evacuation diagrams<br />
correctly placed and orientated? Are the exits signs<br />
and emergency lighting undamaged and maintained?<br />
Have general evacuation and first response<br />
instructions been given?<br />
Has an evacuation practice been conducted? This<br />
should be done annually, and prior to the Gold Coast<br />
<strong>2018</strong> Commonwealth Games would be ideal. Training<br />
is readily available and there are a number of options<br />
for you to investigate, but make sure your workplace is<br />
emergency ready and that your team know what to do<br />
in the possible event of a fire or emergency situation.<br />
If a fire occurs, working fire protection systems<br />
can mean the difference between a minor fire and<br />
a devastating blaze. There is no better time to get<br />
prepared.<br />
Do your research, make some plans, get some advice<br />
and make sure you are prepared for one of the biggest<br />
events to hit the Gold Coast and your business.<br />
Call 1300 80 FIRE and be ready.<br />
Australian Fire Protection are proud members of<br />
the <strong>QHA</strong> who specialise in preparing people for<br />
emergencies through training, independent auditing<br />
and thorough evacuation diagrams.<br />
Preparing people for Emergencies<br />
australianfireprotection.com.au<br />
Ph:1300 80 3437<br />
<strong>QHA</strong> REVIEW | 37