Basic Fire Drill

Although it's unlikely to happen, everyone working in the bar must be able to deal with two types of emergency - fires and bomb threats. You must also do everything you can to make sure that a fire never happens. If a fire does take place, you must be sure that you know all the drills expected of the bar staff. It is also important that you control the numbers of patrons entering your venue so that these numbers are kept within safe levels. This will make the building evacuation much easier and faster in the event of  a fire or bomb incident.

Your role in the event of a fire is to control the door. Depending on the numerical strength of your team, the emergency exits must be covered as well. Your task is to:

• Keep the door clear and ensure the smooth exit of patrons.
• Do not allow people to congregate directly outside the door because this will slow down the exit of other patrons.
• Stop individuals from trying to enter the building for any reason whatever.

It is the task of the duty bar manager to organise the bar staff in both fire fighting and building evacuation.

Preventing fires These basics on fire drills will start with fire prevention because, if everyone gets this right, a fire is much less likely to happen. To get started, fire needs three things.

1. Fuel
2. Oxygen
3. Heat

It should be easy to prevent fire if you always bear this in mind:

• Identify and control all possible sources of heat
• Make sure you keep potential 'fuel' well away from the heat

What actual or potential 'sources of heat' are there in your bar?

These are typical sources in most bars:

• Heating of every sort
• Electric plugs, sockets and cables cooking sources: ovens, grills, fryers etc cigarettes, matches and lighter fuel

What about sources of fuel?

Most bars have lots of potential fuel so we limit this list to fuel that could catch alight relatively easily:

• Top of the list is real fuel: petrol/gas and gas lighter fuel, methylated spirits, cooking oils and fats, and so on.
• Card boxes and rubbish of all sorts - from both the kitchen and bar areas - books, files, loose pages the contents of ashtrays

To prevent fire, everyone must always:

• Check electrical cables and sockets for wear and tear
• Avoid overloading electrical sockets
• Follow good housekeeping routines - keep all areas clean, tidy and free from rubbish
• Avoid stacking combustible material near any sources of real or potential heat
• Store lighter and other fuels in a designated safe place
• Empty ashtrays regularly. Take particular care to keep the contents of ashtrays separate from other rubbish until you're completely sure that cigarette ends are out

Get to know the fire-fighting equipment

Extinguishers may have different colours to represent their contents. Whether your bar has old or new extinguishers, it's important that you know which to use - and which not to use - for different types of fire. The bar must also have a fire blanket and may have a fire hose, these items are very useful in specific situations.

If you discover a fire

• Never try to be brave. Immediately raise the alarm by informing the duty bar manager.
• Use the recognised code word to discuss the threat. (Never use the word 'FIRE' if members of the public are close and within ear shot)
• The duty bar manager must then telephone the fire brigade, or instruct someone else to do so by dialling the emergency number on any phone
• Only try to fight the fire if you have been trained to do so:

1. First ensure your escape route is clear, so you won't get trapped.
2. Your safety comes first.- never put yourself at risk.

• The duty bar manager will decide whether or not to evacuate the bar
• It is the duty of the DS to control the free flow of patrons from the bar in the evacuation process

Grill fires and what to do

These are one of the most common types of fire in bars. It's a good idea to know what to do if you ever work near a kitchen. In a grill fire, flames tend to escape through the vent on the top of the grill. The answer is to:

• Take the fire blanket and place it carefully over the vent to prevent the flames catching anything else
• Use the appropriate extinguisher to put out the fire through the front of the grill

Evacuating the bar

It's the duty bar manager's decision to evacuate the bar because of fire. In the first instance, they are responsible for designating the bar staff to specific tasks so that the bar is efficiently evacuated. He or she will then announce the bar evacuation and ask customers to leave the building immediately, without collecting personal possessions. Designated members of the bar staff should open all exit doors and fire exits and repeat in a firm, clear voice: -----"This way out please".

When all customers have left the building:

• Shut the doors
• Search the whole bar, this includes the toilets etc to ensure no-one remains inside

When all staff say their section is clear

• Leave the building shutting all windows and doors (if it's safe to do so)
• Go directly to the designated assembly point (as detailed in your bar's fire instructions) for a Roll Call.

Bomb Threats

The other time when you may need to evacuate the bar is if there is a bomb scare. Perhaps you take a bomb threat over the phone or find a suspicious package. None of these may seem very likely - but they're possible. It could be you who picks up the phone...

Informing colleagues

Just as with a fire, in a bomb scare you need to inform colleagues clearly and quickly without panicking customers. So use a recognised code word to inform your colleagues.

Phone threats

What you do to respond on the phone and how you follow up the call are crucial. If you receive a bomb threat on the phone:

• Above all, try to keep calm.
• Ask the caller questions like the following, these will help the police or security services:

1. Do you have any code words?
2. Where is the bomb?
3. What time is it set to go off?
4. What does it look like?
5. What kind of bomb is it?
6. Why has it been planted?

• Make notes of what the caller says (note the caller's exact words if you can)
• Keep the caller talking as long as you can to learn as much as possible, but don't worry if the caller refuses to answer or hangs up
• Don't replace the handset when the caller hangs up (keeping the line open helps the police trace the call)
• Use another phone/phone line to call the police immediately, using the emergency code number
• Inform the duty bar manager as soon as possible

Afterwards, think about the call.

• Was the caller male or female?
• Their speech, were they drunk or irrational? Did they have an accent or speech impediment?
• What else could you hear? Any background noise: traffic, airplanes, trains, announcements, conversation, music etc? Was the call from a phone box or private phone?

Suspicious packages

If you find a suspicious package:

• Don't touch it or move it
• Ask all customers to switch off their mobile phones
• Switch off your radios Any form of transmission may trigger off the device
• If possible, check the colour, shape, size, wiring or general details of the suspicious object without touching it at all
• If possible, check whether it belongs to staff or customers
• Place a clear marker near the object, such as a chair or stool on the nearest table to the object
• Move away from the immediate area and inform whoever is in charge of the situation

If you find a suspicious package, the security forces will take over. They will require as detailed a description of the object as possible without anyone having to endanger themselves to obtain that information. This information will be helpful to the bomb disposal team. It info will also be useful to the intelligence collators, should the object explode before it can be examined by the bomb disposal team. The duty bar manager and the police will agree when it's safe to re-enter the bar.

Bomb evacuations

After a warning or if you find a suspicious package, the police might advise you on how to evacuate your bar. The final decision on this will rest with the duty bar manager. For bomb threats and finds, many premises use the fire evacuation drill.

There are further provisos to the bomb evacuation drill that are designed to assist the security forces in their response.

• Ask all customers to switch off their mobile phones. Any form of radio or mobile phone transmission can activate the terrorist device
• Encourage customers to take personal possessions with them (This avoids unnecessary suspicion or delays in dealing with the actual bomb. This can happen if harmless objects are left behind)
• Move the customers away from the bomb location, if you know where it is planted
• If the threat is external to your bar, such as a car bomb, ensure that customers are directed away from the source
• Shut down equipment if possible
• Leave the lights on and leave doors and windows unlocked, especially close to the suspect object
• The faster you can evacuate the bar, the faster the search can start
• With the bar evacuated, move all customers and anyone else at least 500m away from the scene/potential blast area
• The search has to be carried out by the security forces. If the threat was considered serious enough to call them, it becomes their job to deal with the incident
• The security forces will want maximum information about the object. If someone has any useful info on the object, detain them so that the security forces can question them

Secondary  and Tertiary Devices

In some countries, a suspicious package will be planted by the terrorists in order to drive the victims towards the main device. The terrorist may also plant suspicious/hoax devices in order to test and observe your reactions.  They will be checking to see:

• Where you  evacuate all the patrons to
• The location of the security forces parking
• The security forces incident control center
• The cordon points selected for traffic control 

In subsequent bombing operations it is possible for the terrorists to plant bombs at these secondary and tertiary locations in order to maximise the number of casualties. To counter this threat,  you must have someone in charge of the evacuation who has a knowledge of the former evacuation points and is capable of selecting alternative evacuation procedures. 

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Ronnie Gamble, the author of this article, is a Control and Restraint Instructor. He also has a BSc. (Hons) in Social Psychology and Sociology. At present he is researching into group behavior at social events and also, planning a training programme for Door Supervisors and Stewards.