Occupational Health and Safety Act, 1993 (Act No. 85 of 1993)RegulationsMajor Hazard Installation Regulations, 202215. Emergency plan |
| (1) | A duty holder must, immediately after submission of the notification contemplated in regulation 4, in consultation with the relevant health and safety representatives or health and safety committee, in writing, appoint an emergency coordinating team consisting of at least— |
| (a) | the responsible person contemplated in regulation 3(2); or |
| (b) | a responsible person's deputy contemplated in regulation 3(3); and |
| (c) | a representative from the health and safety committee. |
| (2) | The duty holder must develop and maintain an on-site emergency plan before the establishment commences operations in consultation with the emergency coordinating team and in accordance with SANS 1514. |
| (3) | The on-site emergency plan for an existing establishment must be aligned and updated to SANS 1514 within 12 months after the entry into force of these Regulations. |
| (4) | A duty holder must— |
| (a) | ensure that the manner in which employees, visitors and neighbours will be warned of major incidents is included in the plan; |
| (b) | sign a copy of the on-site emergency plan in the presence of at least two witnesses who have knowledge in emergency planning and who must be satisfied with the content of the emergency plan and attest to the signature of the duty holder; |
| (c) | obtain approval of the on-site emergency plan from the relevant local government; |
| (d) | ensure that the on-site emergency plan is readily available at all times for implementation and use; |
| (e) | cause the on-site emergency plan to be tested or exercised in practice at least once a year and take the necessary steps to arrange for the local government to participate in such tests; and |
| (f) | give an early warning to affected or interested parties in case a major incident is likely to go beyond the borders of the establishment. |
| (5) | The duty holder and the relevant local government must take reasonable steps to activate the on-site emergency plan in case of an incident which may result in— |
| (a) | a major incident; or |
| (b) | an uncontrolled event which may reasonably be expected to lead to a major incident; or |
| (c) | a near miss that could reasonably be expected to have resulted in a major incident. |
| (6) | The duty holder must review the on-site emergency plan at least once every three years and, if necessary, revise the plan. |
| (7) | The duty holder and the local government must jointly ensure that all first responders at the scene of a major incident have the necessary skill to deal with the dangerous substances and are dressed in the appropriate emergency personal protective equipment as required in their respective emergency plans. |