Emergency exercises strengthen coordinated response

Exercises based on simulated incidents at company facilities on and offshore are a critical part of ExxonMobil’s emergency response preparation.

At its fuel terminal in West London, ExxonMobil worked with the emergency services and other agencies to test staff responses to an incident and discuss the implementation of new safety measures.
 
The trial scenario involved a fire at the terminal. In order to establish accurate reactions, only the core planning team knew of the exercise; the drill came without warning for most on-site personnel.

The London Fire Brigade, Metropolitan Police, Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and Environment Agency were all involved in the exercise to safely – and flawlessly – evacuate nearly 60 people.
 
In addition, ExxonMobil’s co-ordinators developed theoretical responses and strategies with the visiting agencies, ensuring that the best possible policies are in place should a real emergency occur.
 
Elsewhere, when Hampshire County Council introduced shared emergency planning for potentially hazardous sites in the Fawley area, ExxonMobil's Fawley Refinery and Petrochemical Plant was a central consideration.

FOSPLAN (the Fawley Off-Site Plan) ensures that local emergency services and agencies are prepared for worst-case scenarios, and that their efforts are coordinated through a tactical command centre, which includes representatives of the companies involved, including ExxonMobil.

The team looked at accidents that would require involvement from the HSE, Hampshire Fire and Rescue, the Hampshire Constabulary and several other agencies. The ExxonMobil site’s Fire & Response Group proved particularly effective, advising the tactical command centre during a table-top exercise that explored the theoretical scenario of a liquefied petroleum gas release.

Further afield, in West Africa, employees from the UK formed part of a regional response team (RRT) helping local staff to manage a simulated offshore oil spill.
 
Members of RRTs have special interests or skills that mean they are called on to help tackle emergencies or extraordinary situations.

The two-day exercise in Angola – ExxonMobil’s second-biggest producer in West Africa after Nigeria – ran for 12 hours each day, during which time participants had to track and respond to the spill and mobilise additional assistance to minimise the environmental impact. Meanwhile, a specialist team worked on solving the technical challenges associated with the incident.

An important part of response team preparation is specialised training in areas ranging from leadership team and public affairs response, to aerial surveillance and spill management.