Terrorist Attack at Blackpool - Essay Example

Terrorist Attack at Blackpool Name Course Tutor’s Name 4th April 2010 Table of Contents Table of Contents 2 Introduction 3 Appropriate Command structure 3 Category 1 Responders 4 Treatment and identification of casualties 6 Critical tests and informing the public 6 Incident communication issues 7 Media representatives strategy 7 Press statement draft 8 Conclusion 10 References 12 Introduction It is Christmas time and people are just enjoying the sweet serene weather. This is accompanied by several celebrations as people take time to rest from their long and hectic days of work and just celebrate. However, disaster strikes! A terrorist attack in the Blackpool area! The terrorists attack was planned at Birch Green Area where an airplane released chlorine gases on people in three areas that carry high densities of people. The airplane further crashed on the Blackpool tower causing more havoc. This paper will address the terrorist attack and the events that surround such an attack. These include such things as the command structure, communications and respondents and the means and styles of managing media representatives including a press release draft presentation. Appropriate Command structure This refers to the organization of all the people who aid in service provision in times of an emergency. An appropriate command structure is necessary so as to ensure that the chain of command is in line. The appropriate service providers are categorized into gold silver and bronze levels (Campbell and Langford, 1991). Their main role is to ensure that there is a smooth flow of things at the site of the accident. The command structure ensures that all the parties who are supposed to be involved are present to fulfill the respective roles, which they all are meant to play. The silver gold and bronze groups are the chief coordinators of all that go on around the site and thus they play a very chief role. The silver levels are referred to as the tactical team and their main role is to provide the overall management at the site. Where the requirement calls for very high-level performance then the gold, which is, also the most tactical team comes in. The bronze are known as the operational team and they make sure that each day’s activity goes on smoothly. The Black pool incident will require the tactical gold team for it calls for high tactics and very specialized services(Dunn, 2000). The government departments should all be ready and should always stay set to handle contingencies and emergencies. As soon as there is an alarm warning these departments should be set for action. They should organize for equipment and human resource transfer to the site as a matter of urgency (Campbell and Langford, 1991). The extent or the severity of the incident determines the approach, which the government departments take so as to cope with the demand at the site. The Central Government COBR has an immediate mandate at such instances to send updates to the parliament. The information that they should give is how exactly things are developing at the sight as well as the measures that should be taken to mitigate the incident. The Regional Civil Contingencies Committees come up with strategic plans and measures to ensure that the civil community is protected against any attacks. This ensures that the community at large is protected and covered from all possible threats from within or without. The Regional Civil Contingencies Committee further coordinates all committees involved and come up with a neutral leadership to avoid complications that would further be caused by many canters of leadership (Dunn, 2000). Category 1 Responders These categories of people ensure that the incident is brought to a halt and that things have fallen back in shape. They do all that is within their means to calm the emergency. They include the emergency service that provides the skilled expertise, the ambulances, as well as the machines for excavation. They also include the fire and rescue services and the police department who ensure maximum security (Fallon and Zgodzinski, 2005). The other incumbent people in this category are the British Transport Police and Ambulance for further rescue services. The local authorities are also present to ensure that the town is safe and that things are running. The NHS on the other hand provides health measures and safety safeguards. The category one responders accomplish among other things the following (International Association of Fire Chiefs, 2004): Local Authorities-They ensure provision of site equipments. They also provide the building sites and directions to the rescue centers as well as the hospitals and health centers. Emergency Services-The Fire and rescue services ensure that the fire that began at Blackpool Tower is put off and it also helps and ensures all the affected are rescued and taken to a place of safety or passed to the ambulances. The police ensure sanity as well as security while the ambulance transports the injured to the hospitals and the dead to the morgues. The British Transport Police manage any reported accidents on the roads. NHS-These ease the pain and cater for the injuries of the hurt people. They facilitate provision of the appropriate medical services. They are the trust groups that ensure proper provision of care to the hurt. Other agencies-These include such agencies as the health protection agencies and environmental agencies who should ensure that the pungent emissions from the blast are counteracted so as to hinder further damage to the society Treatment and identification of casualties In an accident site, casualties are of different categories as there are those who are extremely injured and others escape with minor injuries while others are even dead. These people should be identified and placed in their various categories to avoid chlorine infection. The dead are taken to the morgues while the intensively injured are provided with first aid and then rushed to the hospitals using ambulances (Radvanovsky, 2006). The other groups at an accident site are onlookers and the family members and the agencies are supposed to identify them into these categories and offer the appropriate treatment. The onlookers should be allowed to stay only in some areas and not the whole area to avoid interruptions of the rescue process (Radvanovsky, 2006). Critical tests and informing the public It is very essential that the public be informed of the occurrence of an accident or a tragedy. The Civil Contingencies Act dictates that Category 1 Responder has a duty to communicate with the public (Pollak, 2002). This reduces the impact of the accident. Care should be given not to send unnecessary alarm to the public. Information released should be appropriate. However sometimes the information available may cause undue panic and at such times information should be edited. A spokesman should be chosen to give information to the public (Fallon and Zgodzinski, 2005). This avoids double information release, which could also many times be contradictory. The people who are vulnerable like the elderly and the pregnant mothers as well as the lactating mothers and the young children should be given extra and special attention such times (Haddow, Bullock and Coppola, 2006). Incident communication issues Communication is a very key element in such a time and it should be effective as well as efficient. If not checked properly communication expertise and equipment could be the weakest link in an accident site. Information from an accident site should be sieved to avoid bias and a backup system should also be available (Fallon and Zgodzinski, 2005). There should also be quality equipment to carry the right information. The channels of communication should be kept open so as to ensure the right and continuous flow of information is maintained (Radvanovsky, 2006). The method of communication that is chosen should also be effective Methods such as the use of mobile phones may not be so reliable as the paramedics as well as the first responders and even the public may require current information (Dunn, 2000). Hand held radios might be the most appropriate mode of communication. They allow jetting of information to the people who need it appropriately. The lines should be free from any disturbances for operational purposes only. This is to make possible communication with families when need arises and also with friends. Finally, a waiting room for families well as an identification area should be set aside (Campbell and Langford, 1991). Media representatives strategy Media representatives ensure that the public is kept abreast with all the information as it unfolds at the site of the accident. The main purpose is to ensure that emergency unfolding is communicated to the public (Ryan and Glarum, 2008). Ensuring that the media airs appropriate information is core because in most cases it is the only ways and means of availing information to the public. There should thus be an appropriate way to ensure that the information that is aired is the correct information. Formulation of a strategy that ensures appropriate media reports are given should include the following core items (Dunn, 2000). The information committee- this is a committee that should be formed for the sole purpose of communicating with the media and it should also have a spokesman who gives briefs often in the media, this is to limit issuing of double information and biased information (Haddow, Bullock and Coppola, 2006). Edition of information-Information should be edited before it reaches the media. This ensures that ambiguous information and information that alarms the public unnecessarily does not get released to the media (Pollak, 2002). Not every media representative should be allowed into the briefing area. The ones who should have access to this room should have identification marks like tags for easy identification (Ryan and Glarum, 2008). The spoke man should give consideration to the questions posed to him by the media before releasing any answer to the media before being responsive. There should be an appropriate briefing location that should be maintained until the entire emergency case is resolved Press statement draft Black Pool Terrorist Attack Date: 1/04/2010 Time: 1412 Hrs News Release No.01/2010/1412 Blackpool County Council now confirms that there has been a terrorist attack within Blackpool. The actual Attack has been confirmed occurred in Birch Green area. The attack has spread its effects into the nearby Promenade as well as Blackpool Tower. The county emergency unit has dispatched its troops to the sight in urgent response to the news. As a result of the mayhem, there have been reports of accidents in the nearby avenues (Dunn, 2000). As a result, the public has been asked to kindly adhere to the following: People should stay indoors and anyone who is in a public arena should make effort to stay incidences. Incase of any suspicious happenings people should report on the hotline numbers provided. Road transport should not be used as it is resulting from the mayhem until a public decree is given. Further information shall be released as time goes by but in the meantime report incidences of the missing people. People should maintain cool and just coordinate with the above instructions. Any suspicious characters hanging around public places should be reported to the appropriate authority using the hotline numbers. Doctors on the other hand are informed of a need to keep their oxygen banks and their blood banks ready as there could be severe cases requiring help. They are further informed there are cases of burns and breathing complications and damaged limbs. Incase of any question or information on the following hotline number. +442345 23451 345 or +44 6785 23456 4567 More information shall be released at this same venue at 1900 hrs. For further information call Mark Leonard Dupri Government spokes person Mobile +44 344567 45678 Email Leonarddupri@gov.co.uk Website www.gov.co.uk Conclusion Emergency arising from terrorist attacks causes much harm to the society and to the community at large. This is not any different in the Black pool area where a lot of damage has been done both to the infrastructure as well as to the human lives. It has disrupted and damaged the peace of families that were enjoying the serene Christmas atmosphere. The attack was from a plane, which sprayed chlorine gas at the Birch green area. This plane further crashed on the Blackpool tower, which immediately went into a flame of fire. This building is believed to have carried a large number of people most of whom were burnt beyond recognition and others were crashed beyond recovery. This further caused so many road accidents as was reported and chaos seemed to have taken toll. The government and the emergency units should take full toll of the situation. The category 1 Responders should ensure that the situation is mitigated. Fire and rescue police should avail their services and there should be a gold team of experts to deal with these attacks. The police should ensure maximum security is available to curb further attacks. The fire and rescue team should ensure a complete extinction of the fire as well as the excavation of all the people who are trapped under the crumbs. Ambulance International Association of Fire Chiefs, 2004): On the other hand, the NHS should ensure that all the patients get the best care and that they are treated properly. The environmental agency should check into the clearing the chlorine gas that was released. On the other hand, the information being released to the public should be checked so as to avoid causing unnecessary alarms to the public. Strategies should also be put in place to curb communication barriers that should arise. Radio communication should also be put in place so as to ensure appropriate communication. When all these are observed then the emergency case shall be addressed efficiently. References Campbell, R. and Langford, R. 1991. Fundamentals of Hazardous Materials Incidents. New York: CRC Publishers. Dunn, V. 2000. Command and Control of Fires and Emergencies. London: PennWell Books. Fallon, F. and Zgodzinski, E. 2005. Essentials of Public Health Management. London: Jones & Bartlett Publishers. Haddow, G., Bullock, J. and Coppola, D. 2006. Introduction to Emergency Management, 2nd Ed. London: Butterworth Heinemann Publishers. International Association of Fire Chiefs. 2004. Fundamentals of Fire Fighter Skills. London: Jones & Bartlett Publishers. Pollak, A. 2002. Emergency Care and Transportation of the Sick and Injured, 8th Ed. London: Jones & Bartlett Publishers. Radvanovsky, R. 2006. Critical Infrastructure: Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness. New York: CRC Publishers. Ryan, J. and Glarum, J. 2008. Biosecurity and Bioterrorism: Containing and Preventing Biological Threats. London: Butterworth-Heinemann Publishers. Read More