What if I am sent to an Emergency Centre?
If you are evacuated, you may be offered temporary shelter at a
Local Authority lead Emergency Centre. If there is time, remember
to take with you any medication, special foods, useful telephone
numbers, change of clothing, see grab bag for more options.
An Emergency Centre is a building that has been opened at short
notice, to assist the public who have been evacuated from their
homes, survivors of an incident or family and friends of those
affected by an incident. They are created for short term specific
purposes, see below for different types of emergency centres.
Types of emergency centres
Emergency centres include:
- Reception Point for evacuees – designed to
receive evacuees before they are taken to a more suitable emergency
centre.
- Survivor Reception Centre – a secure place for
all uninjured survivors of an incident for shelter, first aid,
interview and documentation.
- Rest Centre – a place designed for temporary
accommodation of evacuees. People will remain at the centres for a
limited period of time before more suitable accommodation can be
found, or they return to their own property.
- Friends and Relatives Reception Centre – a
secure place set aside for friends and relatives arriving at the
scene/ or near to the scene of an incident.
What will happen when you arrive?
- you will registered in by a volunteer – usually Local Authority
staff or British Red Cross
- you will receive regular updates on the emergency as it
develops
- you should advise staff of any special requirements such as
dietary / medical / specialist support requirements at the time of
registering and arrangements will be made for you
If you have any questions / issues when you are at the emergency
centre, there will be an Information Point where you will be able
to discuss your needs.