Agenda item

Debbie Lewis, Emergency Management and Response Manager, provided the Committee with information relating to the Council’s emergency response processes.

The command structure, which included the roles and responsibilities of officers and Members in the event of an incident, was outlined. The Council Gold Group (CGG) included Executive Directors and the Head of Communications. The Council Silver Group (CSG) included Directors and Heads of Services, as well as the Borough Emergency Control Centre (BECC) Manager. The BECC was activated and deployed under request from services such as the Police or Fire brigade.

Ward Councillors were responsible for advising and assessing the needs residents, particularly in instances of evacuation. Member training courses were currently being reviewed, and would be rolled out to Members once completed.

Developments in flood control systems were highlighted, including a new temporary flood barrier system that was designed to be more effective than sandbags. The barriers were likely to be more expensive than sandbags, but also more durable with a longer lifespan. However, this option was yet to be costed, and deployment training would likely be required. Members were enthused at the prospect of more effective flood control measures, but it was understood that the financial impact of any such measures would need to be fully considered.

Members asked a number of questions, including:

A large fire incident at a coal yard in April 2019 was missing from the report’s list of incidents. Why was this?

The report listed incidents that had required full activation from the Council’s emergency response teams. In such instances, the Council would normally only become involved should there be a requirement to evacuate residents. The incident on 28 April 2019 was not an incident that fell under the Council’s remit, though as the fire had not been extinguished after approximately three hours, the Local Authority Liaison Officer (LALO) had been activated. However, by the time the LALO arrived at the scene the fire had been put out. In addition, the Council’s Social Care team had been on standby to help vulnerable residents, if so required.

Was there a requirement for officers to contact Ward Councillors in the event of an incident?

Yes, Members are provided with information and this is facilitated through the Chief Executive and the Leader of the Council, through Council Gold.

The Council is reliant on information provided by the Metropolitan Police Service and London Fire Brigade, which initially is imprecise. As soon as the Council is in receipt of information, briefing notes are provided to the Leader so that the information can be shared accordingly.

In addition, the Fire Brigade will often not share an incident report with the Council until the cause of the incident has been identified. Moving forward, such reports could be disseminated to Councillors, when and if they become available.

What had the Council learned as a result of the four incidents listed within the report?

It was recognised that no two incidents were the same, and each provided an opportunity to learn and improve. Since March last year, there had been a number of relatively small incidents that had provided the Council with an opportunity to review existing plans. The Council’s Corporate Emergency Response Plan was reviewed accordingly, with the aim of making the Council’s response more robust. This remained a continuous process, as plans are constantly reviewed.

The recent incidents raised learning points in relation to how the Council would activate its emergency centres, and the plans have subsequently been re-written.  The emergency centres plans are to be ratified by the Corporate Management Team in September 2019.

It was agreed that the revised plan be forwarded to Members, once ratified. In addition, incident debrief reports could be shared with Members.

Under the terms of the new Local Plan Part 2, the Council was approving more high density and high rise accommodation. How was the Council planning for potential incidents in these new dwellings?

The Council maintains a Borough-wide Risk Register, which is regularly reviewed in conjunction with multi-agency partner organisations on the Hillingdon Resilience Forum, in order to mitigate against potential future risks.

How did the Council work with the Communications team to keep residents informed during an incident?

The Emergency Management and Response Service works very closely with Corporate Communications in order to provide information and reassurance to residents, particularly in relation to advice on areas to avoid, routes to take, locations of rest centres and timescales for evacuations.

The information is provided via social media, the website and through briefing notes to the Leader which can be cascaded to Councillors and residents. This forms part of the statutory duties under the Civil Contingencies Act 2004, which advises that authorities are to warn, inform and advise the public, as to how their neighbourhoods and homes have been affected by a disaster.

It was agreed that details of the major incident exercises planned for October and November 2019 be fed back to Members upon their completion.

RESOLVED:  That the report be noted.