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Preston-based support room means quicker British Red Cross emergency responses

Posted on - 6th May, 2023 - 12:00pm | Author - | Posted in - Charities, Fulwood, Health, Preston News
Emergency Response Room Opening Pic: British Red Cross
British Red Cross CEO Mike Adamson joined emergency response staff and volunteers from across the north at the opening of a new incident response room in Preston. From L to R: ER volunteer Tony, CEO Mike Adamson, operations manager ER North Paul Etches, senior ER officer Emmanuelle Pennarun and ER volunteer Michael.

A Preston-based Incident Support Room (ISR) means the British Red Cross can respond more quickly and efficiently to up to three major incidents at once in Northern England and further afield.

The ISR has a dedicated room in the Red Cross office in Fulwood. It means that staff and volunteers responding to major incidents can gather together in one place to prepare for impending events, such as storms, and plan and coordinate responses to unexpected events like gas explosions and floods.

Ian Reed, senior emergency response officer for the British Red Cross in Lancashire, said: “It’s a fantastic and vital resource.

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Emergency response volunteers Michael (L) and Howard (R)during a mock incident in Preston.

“Having a dedicated space for the Incident Support Room means that we can sit down in advance and properly prepare for things like heatwaves.

“It also means that in the event of a major emergency, we don’t need to waste time finding offices, computers, desks, phones and everything else we’d need because they are already in place.”

The ISR was used to plan the Red Cross response to the heatwave in July 2022. It was also used to plan and coordinate the response to Storm Arwen in the North West and North East of England in November 2021.

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Ian continued: “The collating and recording of information on whiteboards means that we can also manage our time better. Briefing colleagues becomes more efficient and leads to smoother shift hand overs.

“On entering, there is a desk for the person managing the room who ensures that people who don’t need to be there are kept out and that those who do have refreshments and anything else they need during their shift.

“There are also whiteboards for collating updates and information as and when it is released by emergency services, information on staff and volunteers and vehicles and where they are deployed, maps, a conference table and a TV screen to follow media coverage of incidents as they develop.

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“We can do things that can be done remotely leaving staff and volunteers on the ground free to provide practical and emotional support and refreshments and clothes to people affected.

“For instance, we can attend meetings with other organisations responding and update and feedback relevant information to staff and volunteers.”

The ISR will enable staff and volunteers responding to events a long way from Preston to be supported.

For more information on becoming a Red Cross volunteer, visit the British Red Cross website.

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