(104bj) Preparedness for the Initial Moments of a Process Safety Incident

In a natural gas dew point and sweetening Plant, the preparation of Plant personnel was limited to emergency drills centered in the rescue of injured people. The management organization for emergency response was well designed and trained, but the multiple needs to minimize the severity of an incident in terms of plant facilities, competencies, drill scenarios and other aspects were not being properly considered and tested.

Following the recognition of these facts, a broad investigation was carried out at the location to assess the situation and plan how to improve the preparedness of operations personnel.

This paper details the management approach, the range of subjects evaluated and the recommendations that were issued. The author believes that the results show that the structure and approach of the work performed are valuable and applicable to any process plant.