Emergency Management

All emergency and business continuity (BC) and disaster recovery (DR) planning should consider personnel safety as the highest priority.

Elements of the broad security awareness program should address the following aspects of personnel safety:

• Fire detection and suppression systems designed to protect human health and safety first and foremost. All egress paths from the facility should be equipped with deluge systems. Fire marshals (and alternates) should be assigned per workspace and fully trained and practiced.
• Evacuation of personnel should be practiced on a regular basis; all personnel should be aware of emergency exits and procedures.
• Coordination with all applicable external entities (e.g., law enforcement, fire department, medical response) should be performed prior to any actual event so that ready communication and familiarity is established.
• The organization's team needs to consider all localized threats (e.g., natural disaster and weather applicable to the location) when making the response plan and in designing the thresholds for initiating the response.
• Asset protection activities must not put personnel in jeopardy.
• If the organization's response includes relocating critical personnel to a geographically removed alternate site, the organization should also consider budgeting to allow those personnel to relocate family members as well.