UAE Civil Defence Emergency Procedures Manual: A glance

Lieutenant Colonel Ali Hassan Al Mutawa Head of Operations

The application of the Emergency Procedures Manual (or The Guide) is a key essential to achieve the strategic goal of the Ministry of Interior — Ensure readiness by providing a rapid and effective response to all potential emergency situations in the community in the UAE. This is because the guide regulates leadership and executive work rules at all incidents and stages.

The Guide also emphasises the importance of methodological foundations for accidents, crises and disaster administration, as one of the Civil Defence’s key strategic goals. The application of the Guide gives better quality responses and leads for an outstanding performance and support in crises and disasters, and contributes to the formation and development of Human Resources besides creating leaders. This is also a key target of the Ministry of Interior and Civil Defence’s Human Resources strategy.

Excerpts from an interview with Lt Col Ali Hassan Al Mutawa, Head of Operations at Civil Defence: 

What is the importance of this guide for fire officers, firefighters and rescue teams?

The presence of clear, accurate and simple methodologies define each leader or individual’s role at all stages of dealing with incidents and crises, and constitute the infrastructure’s Institutional work at all leadership, supervisory and executive levels.

The Guide also establishes the principles, values and standards of firefighters and rescue professionals’ work, helps them review and improve their performance levels according to specific targets in the team framework, and allows them to achieve better results in accidents.

It provides a scientific methodology for integration between the roles of leaders and teams in all types of accidents and incidents.

The guide allows leaders to evaluate individual and team performances, according to measurable criteria and specific indicators, which elevate the work values, and provide a scientific review of the plans and applications in the field amongst other opportunities.

The guide provides regulatory mechanisms for joint action in major accidents, crises and disasters, according to a pre-emptive and structured Disaster Management Methodology,  not Disaster Confrontation Methodology based on random responses. 

What is the guide’s objective according to a civil defence standpoint?

Risk management leadership at the accident site targets specific operational objectives for safe and effective results within accurate time frames, as rescue, firefighting operations and other complementary emergency services continue their functions.

At the scene, operational leadership is based on the principle of flexibility to adapt to the nature of the incident, its size and the degree of severity. Each team or unit in the area of the accident should have a person responsible (in operational command) for their management and safety.

To ensure this, we must assess the level and type of risk and potential threats to the health and safety of people present at the scene, besides ensuring safe work systems procedures application and associated practices. This confirms that Civil Defence members are responsible for their, and other people’s, safety in the scene. 

All Civil Defence teams should be trained to identify the mechanism of risk, and risk assessment. It would help the leader develop a flexible and secure tactical plan to deal with the variables related to incidents and risks, which firefighters, rescue teams and emergency support may be exposed to.

Is manpower trained on implementation of the guide?

The implementation of the guide started at the end of 2012. Prior to that, the implementation team held a series of courses, exercises and training workshops for operations managers and their departments, centre managers in all public departments, and civil defence departments in the country. 

What are the most important incidents leadership elements contained in the directory?

The Operations Management is keen on a multi-stakeholder leadership system. The hierarchy of grades for field leaders — Bronze, Silver and Gold — hold incident leadership at various progressive stages for all leading groups in the scene.

Note that Bronze is the first level of leadership. In the evolution of an accident, a Civil Defence Commander, at least a Captain (Silver level), takes over leadership on site. But if the accident exceeds tactical level decision makers, leadership should be handed over to the Gold level. The Gold strategic level is the highest and activates when the participation and help of several authorities are required in a fight against the incident.

The Gold level of leadership is rarely used, and its basic role is planning, directing and formulating risk management systems.