Health and Safety
Executive / Commission
Local authority circulars
To: Directors of Environmental Health/ Chief Environmental Health Officers of London, Metropolitan, District and Unitary Authorities and Chief Executives of County Councils.
For the attention of: Environmental Services / Trading Standards / Fire Authorities / Other
This circular gives advice to local authority enforcement officers
1 This circular draws attention to the guidance note produced by the British Council of Shopping Centres with the assistance of the British Retail Consortium, the Association of Chief Police Officers and the Metropolitan Police.
2 The information has been reproduced, with permission, as an appendix to this circular. It covers action to be taken on receiving a threat, search procedures and evacuation
3 The information was designed primarily for shopping centres. However, it may be helpful to LA enquiry officers who receive requests for general advice on the subject. It may also be useful when dealing with the concerns of staff who may be required to conduct searches without knowing how to recognise suspicious articles, or how to react when these are encountered.
BOMB THREATS: SEARCH AND EVACUATION PROCEDURES
1 The overriding consideration must always be the safety of the general public and members of the shopping centre and retailers' staffs and precautionary steps should be taken to ensure that:
- centre management, retailers and police are fully acquainted with, confident about, and in agreement on the procedures to be followed. These should be reinforced by regular joint meetings. Procedures should also provide for incidents outside normal trading hours.
- all are conversant with the communication systems to be used.
- centre management is notified regularly with details of the Manager responsible for security in each retail unit.
- training sessions and practices in shops and in centres are rigorously implemented.
- positive attitudes to property management (eg securing little-used space, and ensuring clean and tidy premises) are introduced to minimise the opportunities for bomb concealment. Police advice on security is available.
2 Each threat needs initially to be carefully evaluated and then any subsequent evacuation of shops or of a centre should usually be preceded by a positive and efficient search procedure to determine the nature and location of the threat.
3 Evacuation of shops is the responsibility of the Shop Manager while the decision on evacuating a centre rests with the Centre Manager or his identified deputy.
An exception to this is where an explosive device is found or where the police have received specific information. In these circumstances they may themselves initiate an evacuation and the directions of the senior police officer present must be complied with.
4 Detailed procedures for individual centres should be formally agreed by all parties concerned and the Centre Manager should ensure that each is in possession of an up-to-date copy.
5 The co-operation of staff and shopping public alike is best secured by thorough procedures implemented by competent, trained staff and these will be a vital factor in ensuring an evacuation with the minimum of confusion and loss of goodwill
6 Suspect objects are not to be moved or touched.
- Details of a telephone call must be recorded in a prescribed form. A suggested form is published in conjunction with this Guidance Note
- It is essential that Police and Centre Management are then informed as a matter of priority to enable them to make an evaluation and response.
- Searches of shops (including non-selling areas) should be the responsibility of the Shop Management, searches of public toilets, stairs and car parks being the responsibility of the Centre staff. It is the responsibility of each Shop Manager to notify the Centre Management on the completion of searches of his designated areas
- It should be a matter of good practice that all areas are routinely searched during the day and particularly at close of business by centre and shop staff. In the case of an alert they should therefore already be familiar with the area to which they are assigned and the techniques to be employed.
- If a recognised incendiary device, or any other suspicious article or package, is found Centre Management control should be informed, who must in turn immediately notify the police and all other retailers. The immediate area must be isolated and fire extinguishers made ready in the vicinity pending arrival of the police.
- Searches should continue in other areas.
- Suspect devices should not be touched or handled for reasons of personal safety. The location of such a device is the scene of a serious crime. Any witnesses able to assist the investigation should be identified and vital evidence should not be disturbed.
Evacuation should be in accordance with pre-planned procedures for each centre; these will be determined by the fire exits built into the centre and by the zones into which the centre is split for fire control purposes.
It is vital that methods of communication between centre management and shops in the event of emergencies are agreed and confirmed amongst the parties at a local level. As telephonic and radio links may become oversaturated in emergencies and face-to-face contacts may be impeded the use of alphanumeric pagers and voice banks should be seriously considered.
Detailed attention should be given to the routing of evacuations away from danger, to the closure of public car parks (particularly multilevel) and associated buildings, to the maintenance of access for emergency vehicles, and to the means of deflecting arriving shoppers.
Take advice about the spread of blast and glass damage when identifying holding and assembly areas.
Procedures should be agreed for the reopening of a centre following an "all clear".
Details of incidents should be carefully recorded and collated by shop and centre managers for future reference.
Bombs - Defusing the Threat. A Guide for Small Businesses. Metropolitan Police
Bombs - Defusing the Threat A handbook for managers and security officers. Metropolitan Police
Bomb Alert - the threat, what to do. Dorset Police
This Guidance Note has been prepared on the best advice available at the time of going to press - the British Council of Shopping Centres gratefully acknowledges the assistance provided by the British Retail Consortium, the Association of Chief Police Officers and the Metropolitan Police.
The note should always be read in conjunction with local procedures.
Supplementary Note to BSCS Guidance Note on
1. IMMEDIATE
- Immediately alert someone else if possible (so that the Chief Security Officer may be informed) but DO NOT PUT DOWN THE HANDSET OR CUT OFF THE CALLER,
- Obtain as much information as you can.
- Try to keep the caller talking (apologise for bad line, ask him to speak up etc.)
- Complete this form as you go along asking questions in sequence as necessary.
| Message (exact words) ..................................................................................................................................................... |
| .............................................................................................................................................................. |
| .............................................................................................................................................................. |
| .............................................................................................................................................................. |
| ............................................................................................................................................................. |
| Where is it? .................................................................................................................................... |
| What time will it go off? ................................................................................................................ |
| What does it look like? ................................................................................................................ |
| What kind of bomb is it (type of explosive)? ............................................................................ |
| Why are you doing this? ............................................................................................................ |
| Who are you? | Name .............................................................................................................. |
| Address .......................................................................................................... | |
| .......................................................................................................................... | |
| .......................................................................................................................... | |
| Time of call ......................................................................................... | |
WHEN THE CALL HAS FINISHED GIVE THESE FORMS TO THE CHIEF SECURITY OFFICER WHO WILL DECIDE WHAT TO DO. THE MORE INFORMATION YOU GET, THE EASIER IT WILL BE TO DECIDE WHETHER THE WARNING WAS GENUINE OR NOT.
2 COMPLETE THE FOLLOWING AS SOON AS PRACTICABLE
DETAILS OF CALL
| Man ........................ | Woman ..................... | Child ......................... |
| Old/Young ............ | Not known ................. |
SPEECH
| Intoxicated ........................... | Irrational .......................... |
| Rambling ............................ | Speech Impediment ...................... |
| Laughing ............................. | Serious ............................................ |
| Accent ....................................................................... | |
Was the message read or spontaneous? ........................................
DISTRACTIONS
Any noise on the line? ..........................................................................
Coin operated phone box?....................................................................
Operator?............................. Interruptions?.........................................
Anyone in background? .......................................................................
OTHER NOISES
| Traffic ...................... | Talk .................. | Typing ................... |
| Machinery .............. | Aircraft ............. | Music .................... |
| Children ................. | Other ............... |
Person receiving call ................................................................
Number of telephone on which call was received ................................
This form is based on an example from "Bombs - Defusing the Threat" published by the Metropolitan Police.