Emergency Response Procedures

["Sue M. Dupre" <DUPRE%PUCC.bitnet@vmd.cso.uiuc.edu>]

My office is an integrated health/safety function office with several sections
responsible for radiation safety, general safety, industrial hygiene and bio-
safety.  We are beginning work on a poster, flip chart, or booklet to be
placed in laboratories near telephones and which will provide some guidance to
lab personnel as to appropriate response and notification in the event of an
incident or emergency.  We have always had a poster which concerned radiation
emergency guidelines.  However, two recent minor incidents (one involving a
small contained radioisotope spill, one involving a limited hood fire) resulted
in a drastic overresponse by local fire and hazmat officials and resulted in
evacuation of the buildings, lengthy disruption of work and a lot of soul
searching about how to more appropriately address incidents and emergencies in
the lab.

We're considering how to set up levels of response/action/notification for lab
personnel.  We're planning for this wall poster, flip chart or booklet to be
comprehensive and to address radiological, chemical and various general safety
incidents.  Do you have anything at present that serves the same purpose and
which you feel works well?  If you have something that would be useful to us as
a model, I would really appreciate it if you could send me a copy to:

Sue Dupre
Office of Occupational Health & Safety
Chemical Sciences Bldg./Forrestal Campus
Princeton University
Princeton, NJ  08544-0710

If you're able to help me out, please send me an e-mail message so I'll know to
expect your mailing.

As always, your help is invaluable and greatly appreciated.

Sue Dupre/Health Physicist/Princeton University