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Part II Laboratory and Research Safety Requirements
Section B Laboratory & Research Safety Management

B03 Laboratory Emergency Response Plan

1. Introduction

A laboratory emergency response plan addresses different types of emergency situations in the laboratory environment. Its objectives are:

1. To prevent fatalities and injuries;
2. To reduce damage to buildings, stock and equipment;
3. To protect the environment and the community; and
4. To accelerate the resumption of normal operations.

At Hong Kong Science Park, laboratory tenants or other laboratory operators are required to formulate their emergency response plans based on their laboratory settings and operations. Such plans shall be revised periodically or whenever necessary. Briefing or induction of the emergency response plan for individual laboratories shall be provided in order that laboratory personnel are familiarized with the respective plans. Drills for certain emergency situations are also recommended to be arranged on a regular basis. This document provides a framework for laboratory tenants or other laboratory operators at Hong Kong Science Park to develop their laboratory emergency response plans with essential elements laid down in the following section.

2. Essential Elements

A laboratory emergency response plan should include the following essential elements:

2.1. Personnel responsibilities and roles – Laboratory operators shall assign responsible personnel who are trained to be liaison personnel, emergency coordinators or responders for different emergency situations. These personnel shall be made known to all laboratory workers and HKSTP Laboratory Facilities Management (Lab FM) with their contact details.

2.2. Emergency notification / communications – In case of an emergency situation, concerned laboratory personnel shall follow the established emergency procedures and report the case using the 999 emergency hotline (for life threatening situations) and/or other emergency coordinators or responders (depending on the situations). The contacts for these personnel (also apply to non-office hours as far as possible) together with HKSTP’s 24hrs Customer Services Hotline shall be made available or displayed in the laboratory. A sample of emergency contact directory is shown in the table below.

Emergency Contact Directory

2.3. Emergency evacuation routes / maps – If an emergency requires an evacuation to ensure the safety of laboratory personnel, all personnel shall stop work immediately, evacuate, and proceed to the assembly point. The emergency escape / evacuation route / map for an individual laboratory shall be displayed at a conspicuous location nearby each emergency exit.

2.4. Emergency equipment / devices – Locations of emergency equipment or devices in a laboratory or its nearby areas shall be indicated in the plan. These equipment include fire extinguisher, emergency shower / eyewash unit, spill kit, first-aid kit, fire alarm button, emergency call button, and emergency exhaust ventilation button.

2.5. Emergency procedures / protocols – Actions and protocols in response to the various possible emergency situations shall be carefully devised in consideration of the specific settings and operations of a laboratory. Such emergency situations may include fire / explosion; spillage of hazardous chemicals / biological agents / radioactive substances; leakage of gases; accidental exposure to hazardous fumes, high energy beams (such as ultra-violet, X-ray, high power lasers), strong magnetic fields; flooding; electric shock; power failure; dangerous machinery failure, etc. For compiling these procedures or protocols, laboratory tenants or other laboratory operators are recommended to refer to HKSTP’s other guidelines where appropriate.

3. Documentation

The Laboratory Emergency Response Plan shall be properly documented and easily available in the laboratory for reference and checking. For laboratories involving the handling of hazardous chemicals, a copy of each relevant Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) should be kept in a location easily accessible to laboratory personnel.

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