Previous Instances of an Incident
The following were the main operating scenarios that the bank plans for mitigating against:
- Loss of Staff
- Loss of Power
- Fire
- Flood (internal and external)
- Health & Safety breach
- Explosion (internal or external)
- Exclusion zone established by Emergency services
- Loss of IT, telephony and/or network communications for longer than one day
- Utility and/or facility failure of a building
- Denial of access to a building
At one time or another, the bank has had to manage all of the above scenarios. One major incident that was managed happened from the discovery of an envelope containing a suspicious substance was detected in the post room. Once the substance was discovered a preliminary investigation was completed and the police contacted.
The emergency response teams were fully mobilized and the emergency services were called to site, which resulted in 17 members of staff going through decontamination. The media were present, with the incident reported as the main item on the evening news and the next day it was front page news for the local paper. Contingency plans were invoked to continue critical processes. The substance was declared non-hazardous.
This incident was positive proof that the time and effort which have been invested in the incident management process and the training and education of the emergency response team has been worthwhile. Despite moving into uncharted waters with regard to the nature of the incident, the fundamental process was robust, withstood the challenge and was well-executed. The priority was clearly understood and full co- operation was received from all operational areas.
Lessons / Messages
The key successes from the powder incident were:
- The 17 staffs were safe with due care and attention given to their welfare. This meant that they all returned to work the following day.
- No business impact was experienced, due to the successful implementation of the contingency plans.
- The incident management model worked and it proved effective for managing the incident.
- Prior exercising ensured that all members of the emergency response team worked well together.
There was effective liaison with the Police, Fire and Ambulance services throughout the incident, which ensured that information they requested was available in a timely manner.
Various communication methods were used throughout the incident to staff, directors and the media. Various methods were employed: one-to-one briefings; press releases; intranet messages; SMS texts; runners; telephone incident lines and a notice board at rendezvous point for evacuated staff.