The health and safety of personnel is paramount. Follow emergency procedures and be guided by the directions of the emergency services. Don’t do anything that puts the well-being of people, including visitors, at risk. If evacuating, make sure that the whereabouts of all personnel are assured and reported.

Procrastination may be the thief of time – but it is the enemy of recovery. Timely decision making can mean the difference between controlling the incident or being controlled by it. Your plan should detail how escalation and invocation will occur, but this needs to be pre-agreed and rehearsed before the event, to ensure success.

In a disaster, the normal decision making process is suspended. A good plan will clearly map out the new management structure and decision making process. Again, regular rehearsal before the event will ensure that all key players know their role in this Crisis Management structure. Once the recovery plan is invoked, ensure you have an experienced Crisis Management Team on hand, but don’t forget the ‘B-team’ who will have to take over in the event of an extended incident.

The plan has been written so that an effective recovery can be achieved by following it carefully. So follow it. However, the plan is unlikely to be able to cater preciseley for any occurrence, and judgement may be required in key decisions. You therefore need to remain open to a change of direction as dictated by the Crisis Management Team, events or the market.

No matter how well you have planned and rehearsed, in a disaster there is no substitute for experience. You will be under stress and in unfamiliar territory. Call on expert help for such items as salvage, loss assessment and other specialist areas as required.

In a disaster it is easy to forget the outside world. Make sure that you communicate with all stakeholders. These include: staff (both affected and non-affected), relatives where appropriate, local authorities, emergency services, clients, suppliers and the media. Make this a priority. Communication is the most important variable under your control. But remember, only authorised, trained personnel should communicate with the media, following agreed procedures.