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W EEKLY EDITION OCT 4, 2017 PAGE 14 Industry Resources in Emergency and Recovery Situat ions …continued Note: The recent hurricanes in the Caribbean and southeastern US have shone a spotlight on how emergency response works – or doesn't work – in these areas. The following article on how to better prepare your company for action when disaster strikes was published in the PSAI's 2017 Industry Resource Directory. 49 2017 INDUSTRY RESOURCE DIRECTORY FEMA's Guidelines for Special Events Contingency Planning FEMA publishes a manual for use by anyone planning or conducting a special event or mass gathering. The manual is intended to enable its users to ensure that adequate measures and systems are in place to prevent, reduce, and provide care for injuries, illness, and suffering that may occur. The manual is not intended to override any existing legislation or local emergency management procedures. Further, it does not seek to address the preparation of emergency response plans, but rather identi!es the elements that should be considered by those responsible for planning and conducting events that attract large numbers of people. Even so, the FEMA-supplied ratios can be helpful to portable restroom operators dealing with local event planners, and serve as a point of reference in disaster planning. Following is the information published by FEMA in the most recent (2010) version of its Special Events Contingency Planning Manual regarding provision of toilets for special events. Toilets Where existing toilet facilities are judged inadequate, you must make available additional portable units. Toilet locations should be: • Well marked • Near hand-washing stations • Well lit (including the surrounding area) if night use is anticipated • Serviced (including pump-out of portables) on a 24-hour schedule during the event (vehicle access is obviously necessary) • Located away from food storage and food service areas • Secured to prevent tipping The following considerations will determine the number of toilets to be provided for particular events: • Duration of the event • Type of crowd • Weather conditions • Whether the event is pre-ticketed with the numbers of attendees known, or unticketed • Whether !nishing times are staggered if the event has multi-functions • Whether alcohol will be consumed Calculating the number of toilets required for an event can be a particular challenge. Where local laws or regulations do not exist, the following guidelines can be applied. Better management of events can be achieved by providing additional facilities. FEMA-supplied ratios can be helpful to portable restroom operators dealing with local event planners, and serve as a point of reference in disaster planning. CONTINUE D ON PAGE 15