Industrial emergency management is the systematic process of trying to prevent, prepare for, and respond to an accident arising in one of the risk prone industries or a transportation incident involving hazardous chemicals in your town.

For the emergency management process to be successful, the stakeholders who would be affected by an accident should know about potential problems and have a say in their solution. The stakeholders include the management of the Hazardous Industries, the Administration including the response agencies like police and fire brigade and the Community. It is important that the stakeholders collaborate and actively participate in the emergency management efforts. A typical emergency management process can be represented by a emergency management cycle as shown below :

Industrial emergencies unlike some natural disasters like floods and cyclones, evolve very quickly and can be equally destructive in terms of impact on human health and environment. The major impacts of such industrial emergencies are mainly concentrated in and around the industries, where the accident has happened.

In industrial emergency occurs in your community, local administration and emergency response organizations like fire-brigade, police, civil defense groups will try to help you. However you should also be ready to take certain safeguards at your end till such help arrives. You should understand local administration and emergency response organizations in our country operate with limited resources and during emergencies they may need to focus their efforts on vulnerable receptors like schools and hospitals.

During an industrial emergency it is very important for everybody to work together to reduce the loss of life and property. When an industrial emergency takes place in your community:

• First verify the information from radio/television or from public announcements. Rumours are generally spread during such
  times - do not be a part of the rumours
• Listen carefully to any instruction that is broadcast / announced - it would help you in being safe
• Follow the instruction carefully and act as directed.
• Stay away from the area of the incident to minimize the risk of being injured.
• Stay Upwind (away from the direction of the wind) or remain Upstream (Flow of the liquid/water)

During an emergency you may be asked to stay inside your house (in-house sheltering) or leave your home (evacuate).