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Major Incident Plan
Status: ratified
Originating Date: June 2009
Date Ratified: June 2009
Next review Date: June 2010
Accountable Director: Director of Nursing
Governance and Performance
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1 Introduction 3
Flowchart for the declaration of an internal major incident
4 Flowchart for the declaration of an external major
incident declared by partner agency
5
Decision to Declare a Major Incident 6
Action card one: Major Incident Room activation procedure
7 Action card two: Role of the Major Incident Room
Controller/Director on call
12 Action card three: key organisational contact numbers 14
2 Background information 15
2.1 Legal obligations 15
2.2 NHS Major Incident 15
2.3 Command and Control 16
2.4 24 Hour Alerting Capability 18
2.5 Major Incident Room 19
2.6 Stand Down 20
2.7 Dealing with the Media 20
3 Implementation and Compliance 22
4 Distribution 23
5 Reference documents 24
6 Review 25
Appendix one
Roles and responsibilities of responding agencies 26 Appendix
two
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1. introduction
If you are reading this because there is a major
incident go straight to the flow charts on pages four
and five, and use the action cards that follow
The emergency services, NHS services, local authority departments and voluntary organisations must have plans to be able to respond to a large scale emergency 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. This Major Incident Plan will ensure that any major incident, internal or external, can be dealt with in an effective manner.
Major incidents are rare and can take many forms. The effects of a major incident may be complex and unpredictable. This plan is intended to be flexible to suit a range of circumstances. The plan has information to ensure that 5 Boroughs Partnership NHS Trust’s approach to emergency planning is in line with the principles of integrated emergency management.
The Chief Executive of the Trust has responsibility for ensuring that the Trust is able to respond to the major incidents identified in this plan.
The plan has been prepared in accordance with the Civil Contingencies Act (2004) and the NHS Emergency Planning Guidance (2005) and associated documents. It is prepared and published to indicate the responsibilities and actions of the staff working for the Trust. The plan cannot be completely prescriptive as there are a variety of incidents that could affect the Trust, and a variety of ways that each incident can develop and resolve. Senior and experienced key personnel will be expected to interpret the Major Incident Plan as circumstances dictate.
This plan sits alongside the Pandemic Flu Plan (Revised December 2008), and the winter and heatwave plans. It will also link firmly with the Business Continuity plans which will be developed in the summer of 2009. These plans are supported by existing Trust policies and procedures, which are designed to ensure sound governance, compliance with legal requirements and safe practice.
This plan is under constant review. Any correspondence requesting changes to the plan should be addressed to the Head of Business Continuity, Hollins Park House, Hollins Lane, Winwick, Warrington WA2 8WA
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internal major incident E.g.
• Hostage • Fire • Flood
Internal incident
Contact from switchboard
Can I manage request with existing resources?
See page 6
Yes No
Manage Incident Declare Major Incident Review Open Major Incident Room
Stand down Follow action card one, page 7
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Contact from switchboard
Request to open Major
Incident Room Request to stand by
Inform switchboard and stand by phone Follow action card one,
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Internal declaration
The decision to declare a major incident for the Trust will be made by the Chief Executive or the most senior person on site in his absence (normal working hours), or the Director on call (out of hours). This may be a lone decision, or follow consultation with senior colleagues, and first on call manager.
The criteria for declaration is based on the NHS definition “Any occurrence… [which] require[s] special arrangements to be implemented”.
The question to ask is “Can I manage the incident with the existing resources?”
If the answer is yes, there are no special arrangements to be made, and it therefore follows that the incident is not major.
If the answer is no, then it follows that a major incident should be declared, the major incident room opened and the major incident team assembled. This will ensure that both the demands of normal business and the demands of the incident can be met.
External declaration
The Trust may be asked to open the Major Incident Room in order to support others involved in a local major incident.
The nature and extent of support required will be dictated by the local incident command and control team via the lead PCT.
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action card one. Major incident room
activation procedure
Be CLEAR and COMPREHENSIVE when giving instruction
A. Preparation phase 1. Pick up your mobile and charger and take it with you.
2. Ensure you have your identity badge. 3. Make a note of who alerted you and the
decisions you have made.
4. Record times and contact details.
5. Liaise with first on call, and decide who is a priority for switchboard to get hold of first. Use generic prompt list at the end of this action card. 6. Normal working hours. Contact Education
Centre (01925 664073) and instruct them to clear Lecture Room three if it is being used for training.
7. Out of hours. Confirm with switchboard that you are coming in, and instruct them to send porter over to open up and wait for you at the Education Centre Entrance to Hollins Park House.
8. Instruct switchboard to send porter over with Major Incident Room store cupboard keys and room access code.
9. Instruct switchboard to call staff as per agreement in step 5 above.
B. Access phase 1. ‘Normal Working Hours’ go to the Major Incident Room.
2. ‘Out of Hours’ meet the porter at the Education Centre Entrance at Hollins Park House.
3. Ask porter to erect sign at Main Entrance to Hollins Park House directing all staff to the Education Centre Entrance. The sign is in the Major Incident Room cupboard.
4. Check whether anybody else has arrived. 5. Ensure Major Incident Room and break out
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Entrance to admit members of the major incident team as they arrive.
C. Call in personnel 1. Contact Chief Executive, all Directors and Assistant Director of Communications. As Major Incident Room controller, determine which directors are required to:
• Come in • Stand by
• Be contacted for information only
2. Confirm with those not required to attend that they may be called at a later stage of the incident should they be needed.
3. Where possible, the Director of Nursing,
Governance and Performance and the Director of Operations should attend. It is recognised that those not on call will need to declare if they are fit and able to attend. If not, they are to suggest someone to act on their behalf. 4. Check with switchboard who they have
contacted, who is coming in and estimated time of arrival.
5. Inform porter so he knows who to expect. D. Open up Major
Incident Room See appendix two for specification (page 29) and layout (page 32)
1. Open up major incident cupboard and follow deployment instructions.
2. Start a formal record of calls, decisions and actions. This to be known as the log. 3. Clear tables to make working space.
4. External activation. If asked to set up Major Incident Room by a particular PCT, contact them to confirm that the room is operational. For phone numbers see action card three (page 14).
5. Internal activation. Contact Director on call of relevant PCT. For phone numbers see action card three (page 14). Be clear whether this is for information only, or whether you want them to do something.
6. In addition, contact NHS Knowsley as they act as lead PCT as per Merseyside Command and Control plan. For phone numbers see action card three (page 14). Be clear whether this is for information only, or whether you want them to do something. Switchboard have the
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to help? Use generic prompt list at the end of this action card.
2. Does the incident still merit the major incident team, or can it now be managed within existing resources? If so, move on to the stand down phase.
F. Stand down phase 1. Internal. Stand team down, ensure normal operational management know they are responsible for recovery phase, and inform relevant PCT and NHS Knowsley that the incident is over.
2. Finalise log.
3. Inform switchboard that the Major Incident Room team is being stood down.
4. Conduct brief review of the incident (hot debrief) to capture immediate learning points and
concerns.
5. Tidy room and note use of resources that will need replacing.
6. Repack Major Incident Room cupboard. 7. Ensure room is tidy and no confidential papers
are left behind.
8. Ensure switchboard organise porter to relock the building, and that all is secure.
9. External. When the PCT informs you that the incident is over, stand team down.
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Who is required to attend will depend on the nature of the major incident. Contact details of Senior Managers are retained by switchboard. All managers have been asked to obtain and retain the contact details of all members of their team.
People • Admin and clerical support • Communications team • Director colleagues
• Assistant Director colleagues • Drivers
• Head of Business Continuity • Health and Safety advice • Mental Health Act advice
• People with local, clinical, or geographical knowledge • Relief team
• Runners • Security
• Specialist advice e.g. estates or information technology Places • Alternative accommodation for staff and/or patients
• Helicopter landing site • Marked out parking • Media briefing points • Rendezvous point for staff • Security
Equipment • Camera
• Clothing/hard hats/safety shoes • Food and drink
• Fuel
• Mattresses and blankets • Minibuses
• Mobile catering • More phones • Remote power • Vans
Media • Briefing room • Power
• Rendezvous point • Security
External support •
Acute Trust support • Ambulance
• Council rest centres • Fire and Rescue
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• PCT support • Police
• Social Services • Utilities advice
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action card two. Role of the Major
Incident Room Controller/Director on
call
Role: to set up an appropriate level of response
1 Keep a record of all messages received or given. Use the log sheets as per example log sheet at the end of this action card. Supplies are in the Major Incident Room cupboard. Record each event with:
• Running number • Date/ time • Name of caller
• Contact details 'phone/ fax • Outline of message
• Actions taken 2 Manage the incident
• Chair a meeting of the major incident management team and support staff
• Confirm details of the incident and who is dealing with the various issues.
• Confirm roles of command team members and support staff • Confirm message handling and log keeping system
• Confirm communications arrangements • Internally with bronze command • Externally with PCT
• Confirm arrangements for briefing Chief Executive and Trust Management Team (acting as Trust Gold Command)
4 Review progress
• Monitor actions being taken and development of incident
• Draw up plans for identification and deployment of relief teams if the incident looks like lasting more than 4 hours
• In consultation with control team, consider standing down when the continued management of the incident can be met within existing resources
5 Stand down
• Stand down team when decision is made that the incident is over • Close major incident room as per action card one: Major Incident
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Log sheet Sheet ___ of ____
No Date/ time Caller Contact details Outline of message Actions taken
1
2
3
4
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action card three. Key organisational
contact numbers
Hospital switchboards (all have 24 hour switchboard)
Halton Hospital 01928 714567
Hollins Park Hospital 01925 664000 Leigh Infirmary 01942 672333/244000 Royal Albert Edward
Infirmary
01942 244000 Warrington Hospital 01925 635911
Whiston Hospital 0151 426 1600
SHA/PCT numbers
Office hours Out of hours NHS North West
(SHA Director on Call) NHS Ashton Leigh and Wigan
NHS Halton and St Helens
NHS Knowsley NHS Warrington
Local Authority numbers (all have 24 hour switchboard)
Halton Borough Council 0151 907 8300
Knowsley Council 0151 489 6000
St Helens Council 01744 456789
Warrington Borough Council 01925 443322/Out of hours 444400
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2. Background information
2.1 Legal obligations
The Civil Contingencies Act divides organisations into two categories, in terms of their response to the demands of a major incident. They are known as category one or category two responders.
Category one responders are likely to be at the core of the immediate response to most emergencies, and include Acute Trusts and Primary Care Trusts (PCTs).
Category two responders are less likely to be involved in an immediate response, but will be heavily involved in preparing for incidents affecting their sectors. The Act requires them to co-operate and share information with other Category one and two responders.
Mental Health Trusts are category two responders, and therefore there is a legal requirement to prepare, co-operate and respond to incidents that would have a detrimental effect on the Trust’s ability to carry out its core functions.
2.2 NHS major incident
The National Health Service (NHS) definition of a major or critical incident is: “Any occurrence which presents a serious threat to the health of the
community, disruption to the service, or causes (or is likely to cause) such numbers or types of casualties as to require special arrangements to be implemented by Hospitals, Ambulance Services or Health Authorities.” This plan covers three categories of major incident:
• a major incident affecting the local community, such as a major road traffic accident or chemical spillage
• a major incident which affects the health services in the area, such as a serious fire on a hospital site
• a major incident which threatens the continuity of key 5 Boroughs Partnership NHS Trust services, such as the need to evacuate one of the Trust’s sites
Valid on date of print only Page 16 of 32 A major incident will require resources over and above the normal day-to-day provision. There may be many casualties, many evacuees, many people affected by the trauma of such an incident.
At such times, priorities for the emergency services and others are to save lives, place people in a safe refuge away from danger and to provide them with the basic essentials of warmth, clothing, food and rest.
Statutory and voluntary organisations have special plans to deal with major incidents so that joint working can be achieved.
Dealing with a major incident in an effective manner requires the co-operation of the emergency services, NHS, Local Authorities and voluntary agencies. Shared knowledge and resources and a joint approach will bring a major incident to a successful conclusion.
For this to happen in practice requires an understanding by all services and agencies of their own and each other’s roles and responsibilities at such times.
See appendix one (page 26) for a full breakdown of specific roles and responsibilities.
2.3 Command and control
Gold, Silver and Bronze are levels of command adopted by each of the Emergency Services.
• Gold is the strategic level of command. The officer designated as having overall command is known as the Gold Commander and the support necessary to undertake this function is known as Gold Control. It does not exercise operational control of the incident but evaluates developments and seeks to maintain a wide overview of policy. Logistics and other functions in support of Silver are a function of this level of command. • Silver is the tactical level of command. The Silver Commander is the
Incident Officer responsible for the operational management of the incident. The location of Silver Control will always remain a matter of judgement based upon the circumstances of the incident but will normally be near the scene of the incident.
• Bronze is the operational level of command appointed by Silver to undertake the control of particular aspects of a disaster, and to manage the incident on site.
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Gold Control. The Trust Management Team will act as Gold Control, to maintain a strategic view of the incident. Briefing arrangements will be determined as in action card two, point two (page 12)
Silver Control. The Major Incident Team in the Major Incident Room will act as Silver Control. They will detail staff to act as bronze controls appropriate to the nature of the incident. The seniority and experience of the Director and first on call managers will be deployed. If the incident involves the Child and Adolescent Mental Health service, the relevant Assistant Director and Head of Service would be higher up the call in list than others, and similarly if the incident affected services in Halton, the relevant Assistant Director and Head of Service would be at the top of the list to maximise local experience and intelligence. However, it is recognised that not all those on the call in list would be available, hence others on the list will be called until sufficient staff have been contacted and can attend.
Bronze Control. This will be led by a Head of Service or Assistant Director, and be responsible for on site management of the incident.
Command and control: external incident
The Trust falls into three Local Resilience Forum areas. A Local Resilience Forum is the vehicle for risk assessment and emergency planning in a defined geographical area, generally based on police force boundaries. It has been agreed with the Strategic Health Authority that the Trust will link in with NHS Liverpool representing the other lead PCTs for monitoring and reporting purposes.
Therefore the Merseyside Lead PCT Function Activation Plan for major incidents requiring co-ordination and mutual aid between NHS organisations and key partners (Oct 2008) applies.
When this plan is invoked, NHS Knowsley will be acting as silver command for the Trust. Contact numbers are listed on action card three, (page 14).
Valid on date of print only Page 18 of 32 SHA NHS Gold Commander At SCG Halton and St Helens PCT Sefton PCT Knowsley PCT Wirral PCT Liverpool PCT
Heart And Chest Hospital Alder Hey Children’s Hospital Royal Hospital Broadgreen Hospital Women’s Hospital Liverpool PCT Provider Services 5 Boroughs Partnership NHS Trust Mersey Care Knowsley And St Helens Teaching Hospital Aintree Hospital Walton Neurology Southport And Ormskirk Hospital Clatterbridge Oncology Cheshire And Wirral Partnership Wirral University Teaching Hospital NWAS Public Health Health Protection Agency Strategic Co-ordinating Group
If the Merseyside plan is not invoked, because the incident is local to one PCT area, it may be that the Trust is asked to open the Major Incident Room by that PCT. In this case, the command and control link would be with that PCT. NHS Knowsley should also be informed as in action card one, section D.6 (page 8).
2.4 24 hour alerting capability
The Trust operates an out of hours on call system for both internal and external contacts. There is a tried and tested on call procedure for staff who wish to contact a Senior Manager out of hours.
Internal incident
Normal working hours (Monday to Friday, 9am to 5 pm)
• The Trust would be alerted by staff should there be an internal incident. Staff would contact their manager who would report up the line of
accountability should the incident merit more senior attention. This is up to and including the Chief Executive (or most senior officer on site in his absence). This process is supported by the fast track incident reporting mechanism and media policy.
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• On call arrangements apply for contacting first on call manager or Director on call. The on call system is operated by Hollins Park switchboard who can be contacted on 01925 664000.
External incident
Normal working hours (Monday to Friday, 9am to 5 pm)
• External contact details are held by sister Trusts and PCTs, and they would contact the Chief Executive’s Office in the event of a major incident for which they are requesting help.
Outside normal working hours (Friday 5pm to Monday 9am, including bank holidays and public holidays)
• External contact details are held by sister Trusts and PCTs, and they would contact the switchboard and ask for the Director on call in the event of a major incident for which they are requesting help.
2.5 Major incident room
The purpose of the major incident room is to provide a dedicated and
equipped space from which to manage the incident. See appendix two (page 29)
Major Incident Management Team
The Chief Executive or nominated deputy will lead the Major Incident Management Team. Their roles are:
• Executive authority policy making – direction and control • Co-ordination of resources
• Establishment of priorities Action cards
• Action card one. Major incident room activation procedure (page 7) • Action card two. Role of the Major incident room Controller/Director on
call (page 12)
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Internal
The major incident controller will decide when the incident has been managed to a position where continuing management can be supported from within normal day to day resources. S/he will be mindful of recovery issues, which may need to managed by the major incident team until they are sufficiently controlled to be handed back to the day to day operational management team. The Trust major incident controller will then notify the major incident team, and operational managers that the incident is over. The major incident controller will also inform the relevant PCT.
External
Notice to stand down at the end of the incident will come from NHS Knowsley acting as the lead PCT within the Merseyside Command and Control
agreement (2.3, page 16), or whichever local PCT activated the major
incident. The Trust Major Incident Controller will then notify the major incident team, and normal operational managers that the incident is over.
Debrief
The major incident controller will hold an immediate review of the incident (hot debrief) to record immediate issues and lessons. A further review (cold debrief) will be held within a month, to draw up a measured and reflective list of learning points and action notes. The Trust will also be represented at external debriefs if applicable, and invite external partners to the internal debrief.
2.7 Dealing with the media
It may at some stage be necessary to ask for announcements to the public to be relayed over local radio or TV. It is important that this is well co-ordinated. All enquiries should be handled in line with Trust Media Policy. The Major Incident Controller needs to determine at an early stage whether a member of the Trust Communications Team needs to be included in the silver control team.
In the event of any incident, the press/media are likely to be on the scene or attending at NHS premises seeking information at an early stage. The level of interest will depend on the nature and scale of the incident.
Valid on date of print only Page 21 of 32 The police will have a Press Liaison Officer, available through their Silver Control, who will be responsible for briefing and co-ordinating/handling press/media enquiries regarding the incident. It is essential that this person liaises with the Trust Communications representative and be given all the relevant information to ensure a co-ordinated response to the media in line with the Trust’s Media Policy.
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3. Implementation and compliance
All staff are bound by the measures and procedures outlined in this major incident plan.Major incident room
A familiarisation programme for those who will be needed in the major
incident room has been developed. This will be repeated for new starters who may be required in the incident management team.
Exercises will be run as per the Business Continuity workstream agreed at The Management Team meeting in January 2009. This will include internal tests in the first instance, but also exercises involving partners. The Trust will also take advantage of exercises run by partners within the three Local Resilience Forum areas.
This plan and supporting action cards will be reviewed and amended in the light of lessons learned from exercises or incidents.
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4. distribution
The plan is available on the intranet at http://nww.5bp.nhs.uk/xxx and an edited version is on the internet at www.5bp.nhs.uk/xxx
[URL to be completed when documents are uploaded] Copies sent to
• Chief Executive • Chairman
• Directors and first on call • Assistant Directors • Heads of Service • Switchboard
In addition, a hard copy is included in the Major Incident Room equipment cupboard.
The following external partners have also been sent a copy: PCTs
NHS Bolton in their capacity as the lead PCT for emergency planning in Greater Manchester
NHS Liverpool in their capacity as the lead PCT for emergency planning in Merseyside
NHS Western Cheshire in their capacity as the lead PCT for emergency planning in Halton and Cheshire
NHS Ashton Leigh and Wigan NHS Halton and St Helens NHS Knowsley
NHS Warrington Acute Trusts
St Helens and Knowsley Teaching Hosptials NHS Foundation Trust Warrington and Halton Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
Wrightington Wigan and Leigh NHS Foundation Trust Local Authorities
Halton Borough Council Knowsley Council St Helens Council
Warrington Borough Council Wigan Council
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5. reference documents
DH (2005) Emergency Preparedness Division: The NHS Emergency Planning Guidance
National Audit Office (2002) ‘Facing the Challenge: NHS Emergency Planning in England’
HM Government: Emergency Preparedness: guidance on Part 1 of the Civil Contingencies Act (2004) its associated Regulations and non-statutory arrangements
HM Government Emergency Response and Recovery: Non-statutory guidance to complement Emergency Preparedness
UK Government Capabilities Programme
http://www.ukresilience.info/preparedness/ukgovernment/capabilities.shtm UK Resilience Website
http://www.ukresilience.info/index.shtm
Department of Health (2004) Beyond a Major Incident Department of Health (2002) Getting Ahead of the Curve
Home Office: Strategic National Guidance for the Decontamination of People Exposed to Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Substances or Materials
The Health Care Standards Unit website http://www.hcsu.org.uk
The Needs of Faith Communities in Major Emergencies: Some Guidelines Department of Health (2007) Strategic Command Arrangement for the NHS During a Major Incident
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6. review
The major incident plan will be reviewed annually in May, or earlier in the light of significant learning points from exercises or incidents.
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appendix one: roles and
responsibilities of responding
agencies
Control structure
Gold, Silver and Bronze are levels of command adopted by each of the Emergency Services. It should be understood that the titles do not convey seniority of service or rank but describe the function carried out at that level. Gold is the strategic level of command.
Silver is the tactical level of command. Bronze is the operational level of command. Police
• The saving of life
• Co-ordination of the multi-agency response
• To secure, protect and preserve the scene. Control sightseers and traffic using cordons.
• The investigation of the incident and obtaining evidence • The collation and dissemination of casualty information • The identification of the dead on behalf of HM Coroner • Short term measures to restore normality
Fire and Rescue Service
• Life-saving through search and rescue • Fire fighting and fire prevention
• Decontamination in partnership with the Ambulance Service • Rendering humanitarian services
• Provide and/or obtain specialist advice and assistance where hazardous materials are involved
• The provision of specialist equipment, e.g. pumps and lighting • Safety management within the inner cordon or rescue zone
Valid on date of print only Page 27 of 32 H.M. Coastguard
• Co-ordination of incidents below high water mark
• Call out of Royal National Lifeboat Institute to effect rescue on coastal and inland waters
• Call out of Royal Air Force. Search and Rescue helicopters. Local Authorities
• Setting up emergency control centre • Environmental health
• Signage and barriers
• Salvage, damage control, environmental control • Call out voluntary agencies
• Co-ordination of psychological support • Assist Police with evacuations by providing
o transport o rest centres o staff
Ambulance Service
• To save life in conjunction with the other emergency services • To provide treatment, stabilisation and care of those injured at the
scene
• To establish effective triage points and systems
• To provide an incident control and communications point at the scene for all NHS and other Medical resources
• To nominate and alert the receiving hospitals
• To alert the on-call Consultant in Communicable Disease Control (CCDC) at the Health Protection Agency
• To provide transport to the incident for the Medical Incident Officer (MIO), mobile medical/surgical teams and their equipment
• Decontamination in partnership with the Fire and Rescue Service Acute Trusts
• Maintain essential Trust Services • Receive casualties
• Prevent, where possible and appropriate, admissions to Accident and Emergency
• If necessary, decontaminate self-referrals • Provide isolation facilities
• If necessary liaise with Primary Care Trusts to activate the early release procedure
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• Maintain existing services
• Offer mutual aid to neighbouring NHS Trusts
• Offer access to specialist and technical staff as appropriate • Provide logistical support where necessary
Health Protection Agency
• Provide initial response for Primary Care Trust via on-call Consultant in Communicable Disease Control (CCDC)
• If necessary, set up Health Protection Agency major incident room • Arrange for CCDC to attend at appropriate emergency centres. • If necessary chair Scientific and Technical Advice Cell
Primary Care Trusts
• Maintenance of essential Trust Services
• Support to Hospital Trusts including activation of the early release procedure
• Support Health Protection Agency response • Direct care and advice to people affected • Care in community settings
• Social and psychological care in conjunction with Social Services • Health screening and continuing care
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appendix two: Major Incident Room
specification
Main contact
Phone numbers – dedicated lines
Rooms
See plan on page 32 Primary room
Lecture Room three in the Education Centre, Hollins Park site. The room is already equipped with:
• Chairs • Computer
• Digital lock on the door (code with switchboard and listed in major incident room cupboard)
• Flip chart easels • Projector
• Tables • Television • Whiteboards
Break out room
The Information Technology suite next door will be used as a break out room. Briefing room
Lecture room one will be used as a briefing room for press, public or staff. The locked cupboard outside Lecture Room 3 contains the equipment listed below, plus instructions on deployment:
Major incident room equipment • 4 phones
• Blackberry mobile phone charger • Blutack
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• Fax machine • Flip chart pack
• Main entrance divert sign • Maps
• Master key
• Packs of flip chart pens • Pens
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Backup room
Agreement has been reached with NHS Halton and St Helens to use their Major Incident Room. In return they will use our primary room if theirs are out of commission.
NHS Halton and St Helens were chosen as they have Major Incident Rooms in both St Helens and Runcorn. If the major incident affecting 5 Boroughs Partnership was on the Hollins Park site, and the principal room was out of action, it is likely that NHS Warrington would have activated their room as the incident is in their PCT area. However, NHS Halton and St Helens are less likely to do so in that scenario.
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