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Most emergencies are completely unpredictable. But local
authorities are required by law to devise an emergency plan so that
resources and experienced people are on standby to respond quickly
and in the best possible way when a major crisis - of whatever kind
- occurs.
Kent County Council has an Emergency Planning Unit which draws
up, maintains and reviews arrangements for dealing with major
incidents. It co-ordinates responses across the council, and works
closely with the county's emergency services and 12 district
councils to ensure that the right people with the right skills are
well-briefed and ready to react.
What is the Emergency Plan for?
The purpose of the unit's main 'generic' emergency plan is to
provide vital information and supporting details that will enable
teams to:
- make good, immediate decisions
- co-ordinate their efforts to be most effective.
The plan is not designed to specify what actions need to be
taken when a crisis happens. But rather to provide the information
that's essential to any emergency response.
You can view a full version or an outline of the
Kent
Major Emergency Plan.
We also look after specific plans for any emergency at a
particular site or of a particular type. These cover, for instance,
emergencies involving the Channel Tunnel or the Dungeness power
stations, or oil pipelines.
View or download our
specific
emergency plans.
And we help Kent businesses cope when faced with major
disruption to their operations, by providing expertise and plans
for
business continuity.
Central government provides some of the funding for emergency
planning and recently introduced new legislation to improve the
UK's ability to deal with the consequences of major disruptive
incidents. The Civil Contingencies Bill received the Royal Assent
in November 2004 and replaces the Civil Defence Act of 1948 and the
Emergency Powers Act of 1920.
The Cabinet Office provides detailed information about the new
act at the UK Resilience website (opens in new
window).
The Kent Community Risk Register
The Kent Community Risk Register is published by the Kent
Resilience Forum. This is a partnership of all of the organisations
that have a role to play in the response to a major emergency, such
as the emergency services, local authorities, health services, the
various utility companies, the military and voluntary
organisations.
View the Kent Community Risk Register.
The purpose of the Community Risk Register is to assure the
people of Kent that:
- an assessment of potential risks has taken place
- this assessment is informing Kent's approach to joined-up
emergency planning - at a local, regional and national
level.
The Kent Community Risk Register was prepared by the Kent
Category 1 Responders in accordance with the Civil Contingencies
Act 2004 and its associated regulations and guidance.
Kent Resilience Forum Pandemic Flu Plan
The Kent Resilience Forum has also developed a Pandemic
Influenza Plan to ensure an effective local response. View the
KRF Pandemic Influenza Plan. |