Welcome

Welcome to our Uniformed Public Service Responding Blog  this is our electronic work diary to show what we have been covering in our lessons at college on this blog page we have covered the following

·  The legislation that effects the uniformed public services

·  The Importance of Scene Preservation

·  Command and control

·   The roles and the responsibility of the emergency services at the scene of a incident
 

Thanks very much for viewing any questions don’t hesitate to email us @ adam.c.485@gmail.com

The Emergency services 999 systems



The 999 system is emergency services system that allows members of the public to directly and promptly contact the emergency services such as

·         Police service

·         Ambulance service

·         Fire service

Specialist Units

·         Coast Guard

·         Mountain rescue

·         Cave rescue

The 999 emergency service system was first introduced on the 10^th November 1935 after there was a bad fire on wimple street as a result of poor response times five woman where killed.

A member of the public was outraged and disgusted after they tried to notify the fire brigade but was then placed on hold by the telephone exchange after complaints where printed in the times newspaper a government inquiry was launched and the findings found that there had to be a direct contact line to the emergency services.

The 999 emergency  number is one of the oldest numbers in the world and is internationally recognised

The reason why 9-9-9 was chosen was because A and B buttons was designed for pre-payment services this was introduced in 1925 this existing services could be modified to allow for free calls to the emergency services the modified system would only allow the three digit number of 999 to be used for three services.

Calling procedure

Legislation and the Uniformed Services at a incident By Adam Clark



In this section of our work we will be looking at the different pieces of legislations that affect the uniformed services when attending an incident

The pieces of legislation that we are going to be looking at are

·         The health and safety at work act 1974

·         The Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002

·         The Reporting of injuries , diseases and dangerous occurrences regulations 1995

The Health and Safety at Work Act 1974

The health and safety work act 1974 is an act of parliament that sets out regulations and responsibilities as well as the duties for employees, employers and members of the public using facilities

 

How does this apply to the emergency services?

We’ll all the emergency services have to be safe in their job the health and safety act explains that employers have to have the consideration and welfare of their workforce as one of their top priorities and that all workers need to act responsible in a place of work but the nature of the work of the emergency services whether it be police, fire or ambulance they have a unique and different job than the average worker so prevention of injury to uniformed services personnel is vital.

The H&SWA outlines the requirement for PPE which stands for Personnel Protective Equipment.

The uniformed services where PPE when they are responding to incidents to keep them safe and allow them to operate more effectively and has on more than one occastion saved thier lifes.

Here are the different emergency services PPE

Police Service

Normal Basic

·         Stab Proof Vest and utility vest ( Usually high visibility now so its multipurpose)

·         Steal toe cap Police Boots

·         High Visibility jacket so can be seen in all environments

·         Latex Gloves in case they have to provide medical attention

·         First aid kit to either self-administer first aid if provide basic to members of the public if needed.

·         Police Officers Helmet

Public order Gear

·         Riot helmet

·         Flame Resistant overalls

·         Public order boots

·         Flame Proof Gloves

·         First aid kit

·         Water bottle

·         Riot shield

·         Baton

The Fire Service

·         Flame proof jacket

·         Flame proof trousers

·         Helmet

·         Boots

·         Flame resistant gloves

·         Respirator and Hazmat suit

The ambulance service

·         Boots special boots that don’t take blood or bodily fluid away from scene

·         Coveralls

·         Jacket

·         Helmet depending on incident

·         Latex gloves

·         Face masks

An example of how PPE can save uniformed services workers life’s is the following a HAZMAT HGV carrying acid tipped over and the substance leaked onto the road the driver died as a result of the acid leaking onto him a police officer that responded to the incident ran to help the officer noticed that there was a burning sensation and look down to see that the soles of his police boots where starting to melt. His PPE boots saved him from the same fate as the driver

The health and safety at work act cover safe guarding the employees and employers as well as members of the public it ensures that workers where PPE equipment to keep them safe and that their  safe practice at the work place.

The Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 1995

RIDDOR is a piece legislation that is laid down the parliament of the United Kingdom. It gives the requirement to those of responsibility in the work place to report to the health and safety executive any deaths, injuries, any persons of work for long periods of due to illness or any dangerous occurrences the only organization that this does not apply to is the armed forces due to the unique nature of their work.

RIDDOR was created because of incidents such as the Oaks colliery disaster where more than 300 people were killed this is one of the worst incidents in the United Kingdom unfortunately people still die whilst at work every year so it is so important to report the above so that we can learn from their mistakes.

How Does Effect the Uniformed Services?

If a member of the uniformed services is injured or taken ill or even in tragic circumstances killed whilst at work their superior has to report this to the senior officers who will then contact the H&SE this is so that provisions can be made so that it does not occur again.


 The Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002

 

The control of substances hazardous to health regulations 2002 regulates the use and control of hazardous materials such as chemicals and toxic substances at the work place and also sets out what to in case of a incidents such as a spillage

The use and exposure to hazardous material can put workers at risk so it is important for employers, employees and members of the public to be safe this is where COSHH comes in.

Without COSHH workers can suffer from being exposed to hazardous material and the results from this vary from the following.

·         Eye irritation

·         Chronic lung disease

·         Hart problems

·         And even death

When workers follow these COSHH Regulations it has a positive outcome such as

·         Boots team moral

·         Gives works a better understanding of the risks and how to stay safe whilst handling hazardous materials.

Because of the nature of emergency services work they may be exposed to hazardous materials COSHH regulations states that they must wear appropriate personnel protective equipment and have appropriate training in handling the substances

The public services such as the fire and rescue services respond to incidents that involve hazardous materials such as flammable substances, chemical agents, biological agents and radioactive substances.

These types of incidents can happen in a variety of different locations such as on the road in road traffic collections, agricultural land, and reach laboratories.

They can also arise in natural ways such as floods that can spread sewage waste this is a form of hazardous materials because it spreads infections and diseases

 All three services would work together in an incident that involves hazardous material the emergency services have to do the following

·         Decontamination of persons involved with the incident

·         Mass decontamination of person in the case of a major incident

·         Pass decontaminated persons onto the ambulance service who will then pass the casualties onto the hospital for further medical treatment.

·         Cordon of the contaminated area  

·         Prevent further injuries from substances

·         Prevent further damage to the environment

·         Search for information regarding the hazardous material

·         Clean and dispose of hazardous material

If a tanker carrying hydrochloric acid collides with a car on the motor way and there is a spillage as a result of the crash the emergency services would have to seal of the area to prevent further injury they would then asses the situation to see if it possible to rescue the casualty the fire services would then suite up in the hazmat suits and enter the area trying to find information on the substance once determined they would rescue they casualties form the area once the casualties have been rescued they have to decontaminated to ensure that they are no longer at risk this is done by the fire service in the special decontamination tent they are then passed onto the ambulance service for medical treatment and transferred to hospital.

The emergency services need to then start to clean up the spillage hydrochloric acid can be broken down with water once the scene has been cleansed of the substances the police can begin their investigation to what had happened during the time of the cleaning and rescue process the police service will redirect traffic and secure the scene to prevent the contamination of any other persons.

Cosh would affect these people in by making sure that they had received the required training and they were properly equipment to deal with incident

The Importance of Scene preservation By Lewis Grocutt

At the scene of a incident such as a road traffic collision there has to be an investigation to see why the incident occurred the site of a RTC is a crime scene with evidence that will determine the cause if the incident especially in the unfortunate event that there is loss of life

Arrival at Scene

When arriving at the scene of an incident the first officer their must make a note of the following things

·         Time and date

·         Weather conditions

It also the task of the officer to preserve and secure the area to maximum effect because this has now become a crime scene it is important to note that if there is urgent medical attention is needed to victims this has to be the officers main priority.

However unauthorised persons such be kept out of the area this is because there is a high risk that they may tamper or contaminate evidence.

Once the area has been secured the investigating officer must then start to evaluate the crime scene and have a method of investigation for the crime scene investigators

They have to

·         Ensure the preservation of the evidence this is form tampering persons, weather or fire the evidence has to be preserved.

·         Remove any witnesses form the area and take their details for the later inquiry

·         They must record all movement at the scene and not persons moving evidence

Recording the Crime Scene

Recording the crime scene untouched in its original state is very important for the inquire and to provide evidence in court.

When in court details of the incident scene and the location of physical evidence have to be provided as evidence there are three way of recording evidence these are

·         Photographs

·         Sketches

·         Notes

The police service now use video recordings which combine all three of the above making it a effective way of recording a crime scene

Photographs

The police photograph the scene of the incident to show a clearer picture of the whole environment they take photographs of physical evidence to show their location and relevance to the incident.

They take closer up images of the evidence to show them in a greater detail. If unfortunately there has been a fatality the body needs to be photographed from different angles to show Injuries and when the body has been removed the ground beneath it also needs to be photographed as party of the evidence.

Sketches

A rough sketch of the scene should be made by the investigating officer this enables maximum information to be obtained. The sketched area should show all the evidence. It should have the measurements of the scene from two fixed points which is taken form a tape measure the compass north needs to be indicated on the sketch.

The sketch is only a rough sketch and the officer does not need to focus on how neat it is only on getting down the maximum amount of information.

The rough sketch is then reproduced using computer software which can then be later used in court.

Note Taking

Alongside the use of photographs and the sketches the police use note taking to give a detailed description of the scene they also make not of any persons that come into contact with the evidence. The police officer can use a voice recorder for this purpose but they will have  to transfer the information to a written document to be provided as evidence in court

These methods are used to record the scene and all the evidence and information that is in the scene of the incident

Searching for evidence at the scene

Obtaining evidence in the scene of an incident is very important the more evidence the stronger the case and a more detailed explanation to what happened during the incident. The police carry out a detailed search of the area and to ensure that there are no duplication of efforts in the investigation a forensic officer would not be brought on the scene the police use field evidence technicians that are skilled in photography and evidence gathering to collect physical evidence.

When searching the scene if officers find any doubtful items they needed to class them as evidence unless they can be proven otherwise protective clothing needs to be worn so that the officers do not contaminate the scene

Evidence that is obtained is stored and labelled by the police and held at the police station until it is given at the court case.

 

So why is scene preservation important?

Scene preservation is very important at scenes of incidents it allows officer to determine what happened and who was at fault if there is any. The evidence that is obtained can be used in the later inquiries and court cases.

We have had an example for one of our college lectures Bob Hopkins who is a former police inspector he told us of the time that he attended the scene of a rtc and once the initial incident had been dealt with a fire officer began to was the road washing away evidence before the police had begun there initial investigations tampering with evidence is a very serious offence and he had to report this matter on the following accounts one removing an tampering with evidence and secondly he was operating without instruction of guidance from bronze command in a incident.

Preserving evidence if very important it allows emergency officer to find out what happed so we might learn from other peoples mistakes.

Command and Control By Josh Robinson

In a chaotic environment in an incident such as a RTC there has to be a considerable amount organization and leadership and our next part of our presentation is about how the emergency services liaise with each other and how command and control system works

Command Structure

The emergency services in the United Kingdom have a Gold, Silver, and Bronze command structure.

It was created by the Metropolitan Police in 1985 after a serious riot that broke out in north London where PC Keith Blakelock was murdered by rioters

The police service soon realised that the ranks system that they were using was no good for sudden incidents because on the evening of the riot it was not clear who was in charge of coordinating the police efforts to stop the riots.

The police decided that three important roles where more important than the many ranks that some offers held.

Gold silver and bronze command structure was created and soon rolled out to all police units across the county as the standard command protocol

heres is the Command structure 

The benefits of having a command structure emplaced is that it allows for an effective response to the incident to be done quickly and efficiently with no confusions about what service is in control and who is responsible for what actions whilst the operation is on-going the command structure allows for prompt and immediate action

Roles and responsibility’s of the Emergancy Services at a Incedent By Matt Pardner

this  is looking at the different role and repsonsibilaties that the emergancy services have at the scene of the incedent.

POLICE

The role of the police service is to co-ordinate and control the whole operation whilst the incident is taking place  

Because the police are the main co-ordinators it is they who have to liaise with local authorities and the other emergency services

The police are responsible for all persons around the scene an important role that they have is two preserve the scene of the incident for the later investigation, inquiries or even criminal prosecution.

Police service Responsibilities 

Saving life alongside the other emergency services

    Protection of property

    Co-coordinating the emergency services and support organizations

      Preservation and protection of the incident scene

        The investigation of the incident in alliance with other investigating bodies

       Collecting details of the casualties

     Identifying the deceased for HM Coroner

   Restoring order and normality at the earliest opportunity after the incident

      Coordination between the local authorities and the emergency services

FIRE SERVICE

The fire services primary function is to save life protect property and provide humanitarian services as well as protect the environment

Fire Service Responsibilities

       Carry out search and rescue and fire fighting operations

     They control the access to the incident area and are responsible for the safety of everyone that are working and entering the inner cordon

      Prevent any further escalation of the incident by tackling fires dealing with chemical spills and other hazardous  and dangerous materials

        Implement and use radiation detection and monitoring equipment in radioactive material is detected or suspected to be involved in the incident

        Obtain information and implement risk assessments provide the police information and advice on whether or not the public need to be evacuated from the scene of the incident

       Liaise with the ambulance service  e.g. the ambulance incident officer to see if the ambulance service need any assistance and the sorting of the priority of the casualties

     Take into account the effect can have on the environment and take appropriate action to ensure that efforts are made to protect the environment

        If needed assist the police with collect the dead

      Assisting in collecting evidence and giving evidence at investigations and inquiries

       Remain on standby at site to ensure safety

AMBULANCE SERVICE

The ambulance service is part of the National Health Service they administrate emergency first aid to the casualties and move injured persons to the hospital.

Ambulance  Service responsibilities

     Alerting and mobilizing NHS Staff and personnel to deal with the incident

      To form a focal point for medical staff and medical resources

      Saving life’s alongside the other emergency  services

   Providing treatment and care for persons who have been injured in the incident

      Categorize the casualties for treatment from the priority casualties such as not breathing to minor casualties.

       Alert the hospital of the incident in order to prepare for casualties

     Ensuring the appropriate transport to the hospitals for the casualties    

  Ensuring that there is adequate medical resources and personnel on the scene

        Communications between the paramedics at the scene and the hospital

    To maintain emergency cover whilst the operation is commencing and during the incident.

        Restore order and normality after the incident