A fire, a power outage, or any violent threat—emergency situations arise unannounced and require a response within seconds. To calmly handle such situations, it is imperative for any business to have a clear action plan. Without one, things can quickly spiral out of control.
This Emergency Action Plan (EAP) template by WordLayouts is more than just a checklist. We bring to you a complete guide that defines roles, outlines response steps, and supports clear communication in high-stress situations.
Whether you’re a small business, corporate office, school, warehouse, or government facility, this ready-to-use emergency plan is a reliable resource for creating an action plan and effectively managing any unforeseen situation.
Let’s see how this template can help you respond calmly to any crisis situation by defining a clear action plan.
Emergency Action Plan Explained
An Emergency Action Plan is a set of procedures that guide individuals and organizations on how to quickly act in emergency situations. It includes specific roles, responsibilities, and steps to be taken during an emergency situation to minimize damage.
Why Do You Need An EAP?
Having an emergency action plan is not only a good practice but is also required by law. According to Occupational Safety and Health Standards (OSHA), almost all businesses are required to have an EAP in place.
Therefore, having a well-structured emergency plan is not only essential for ensuring the safety of everyone at the workplace but also helps protect you from penalties, citations, or increased liability in the event of an accident at your organization.
Emergency Action Plan Template —OSHA Compliant
This editable and printable template for an EAP is drafted to help you stay compliant and protect your people in any crisis. Its clearly structured layout is easy to navigate and brings the clarity you need when things are not in control.
Key Features:
- Available in multiple formats of DOCX, Google Docs, and ODT.
The template is fully editable, and each section and field can be tailored to your business’s requirements. - Covers 20+ emergency scenarios, including fire, medical emergencies, active shooter, chemical spills, natural disasters, bomb threats, and more.
- You will find fields for emergency contacts, response team roles, first aid personnel, equipment locations, evacuation routes, and post-evacuation accountability.
- clearly labeled sections (SEC 01 to SEC 04) for fast navigation
- The template is built on OSHA guidelines, emergency response best practices, and facility safety planning.
- Features severity levels (1–3) for scalable response based on incident risk
What is Inside this Emergency Action Plan Template
This template has a fill-in-the-blank structure. In all sections, you can write the relevant information about the workplace, team, and risks.
Now let us go over each section of the template and see how you can fill it with your information:
Section 01: Emergency response resources
Here you can document your facility’s available tools and safety equipment:
- Emergency & Personal Protective Equipment: You can use this section to clearly elaborate on what emergency tools are on-site (fire extinguishers, AEDs, PPE, etc.), including exact locations, assigned custodians, and usage guidance.
- First Aid Kits: In this field, identify the location and contents of first aid kits and AEDs (automated external defibrillators). Plus, do not forget to add inspection dates on all supplies and designate staff to restock or check supplies.
- Trained First Aid Personnel: Be specific in filling out this section. The employees who are certified in CPR/AED training and the shifts they cover should be mentioned here. While it is not mandatory in many industries, it is a good practice to make it possible for your employees to obtain these certifications as part of workplace safety training.
- Nearby Emergency Facilities: In line with OSHA regulations, every employer must ensure that emergency medical services are in reasonable proximity and accessible. Following this, use this section to mention the contact details and addresses for nearby hospitals, urgent care centers, fire stations, and police departments closest to your location.
- Alarm & Communication Tools: Lay out the communication tools here, which will be used in case of an emergency, such as alarms, PA systems, radios, group text tools, and intranet alerts.
Section 02: Emergency contacts
In this section of the EAP template, write your organization’s specific contacts, both internal and external:
- Emergency Services: To ensure that everyone can make timely contact with the emergency services, list the numbers for local police, fire department, EMS, poison control, and emergency management offices. Keep in mind that including both 911 and local direct numbers can be very useful, as local services might respond faster in certain jurisdictions.
- Internal Worksite Contacts: These are usually the first line of response before emergency services arrive. Names and contact numbers of any relevant staff, such as building managers, safety officers, department heads, security personnel, and HR representatives, can be listed here.
- Government & Utilities: Power loss, water shutoff, or gas leaks can be just as disruptive as a fire. So, be sure to include the contact information for utility providers for power, water, gas, and telecoms. It is a good idea to mention the emergency hotline here for all utility providers.
Section 03: Emergency response team
This section allows you to define key personnel roles and responsibilities:
- Administration & Safety Committee: Fill in the names and titles of individuals responsible for overseeing the emergency response plan.
- Response Coordinators & Floor Monitors: Identify staff responsible for activating the plan and guiding others during an incident.
- Assistants for People with Disabilities: Assign staff to help individuals with mobility or accessibility needs.
- Municipal & Property Contacts: Include those responsible for infrastructure or external coordination.
Section 04: Emergency reporting protocols
This section of the template acts as a structured guide for responding to a wide variety of emergency situations. You can use this section to assign responsibilities, standardize reporting procedures, and adapt response actions to fit the unique risks your facility faces.
The template includes 13 pre-labeled emergency scenarios, each with fillable response sheets to help you build actionable plans for common workplace risks.
For each emergency scenario, you will fill out the following details:
Severity levels (minor to critical)
Categorize the emergency using a clear severity scale.
- Minor: If something is localized and no external support is needed (e.g., a small spill).
- Moderate: If a situation requires internal response coordination (e.g., injury, partial evacuation).
- Critical: This refers to an incident that affects a large number of people and can affect your normal operations (e.g., fire, active shooter).
Contact roles
For each scenario, you should define who is responsible for each of the following:
- For discovering and reporting the incident
- For contacting the emergency services
- For alerting internal personnel such as the floor warden, safety officer, supervisors, etc.
- And finally, for coordinating the evacuation or response activities
Step-by-Step Action Procedures
In this section, make sure that you are providing a clear, sequential set of instructions for each emergency type:
Facility-specific instructions
This is the most important step when filling out the template. Your instructions should be customized for your physical environment. For instance, you can include maps, include directions to exit routes, or the location of safety equipment according to your location. If you have any high-risk areas in the building, then include specific procedures for managing those during incidents.
13 Emergency Scenarios Included in this Template:
- Medical Emergency
- Elevator Entrapment
- Chemical Spill
- Fire
- Structure Damage Incidents
- Extended Power Loss
- Severe Weather and Natural Disaster
- Code Adam
- Demonstrations and Civil Disorders
- Hostage Situation
- Active Shooter Situation
- Bomb Threat
- Homeland Security Level Red
Evacuation & Recovery
In addition to all the scenario-based response plans, this template also includes a comprehensive evacuation and post-incident recovery plan to ensure the safety of all your personnel.
It includes sections to customize your building’s evacuation strategy and recovery plan:
- Evacuation Routes & Assembly Points: Provide building maps, designated exits, and meeting areas.
- Critical Operations: Write down the names of the employees who perform shutdown or safety-critical roles before evacuation, such as shutting gas valves, locking down sensitive areas, etc.
- Employee Accountability: Describe how staff will be accounted for post-evacuation. It can include a manual headcount, a sign-in sheet, or mobile check-in via apps.
Every section of this template is formatted to guide you step-by-step while still giving you the freedom to adjust language, priorities, and procedures to fit your environment.
Now that you know what is included in the template, we will move forward and see how you can customize this template for your environment.
Customizing Your EAP Template
Okay, now that you have the action plan, this is just the first step in ensuring safety at your workplace. To make it truly effective, you should tailor it to your organization’s specific needs.
Here are some ideas that will help you make the most of this template:
Use real names instead of titles
Do not leave the name sections blank in various fields for the response team. Also, do not rely on just titles. Always write the full names of the people responsible for managing various situations. If someone leaves the company, update this information immediately.
Verify the accuracy of your EAP
Once you have filled in the template, walk through your facility and physically verify the information. Check the emergency exits, PPE stations, fire extinguishers, first aid kits, etc., to ensure accuracy in your document.
Tailor the EAP template to your environment
This template is a comprehensive document designed to address a wide range of emergencies. However, to use it effectively, you must tailor it to the specific needs of your unique business. For instance, if you have a daycare center, you do not need to include chemical spill procedures, whereas if you manage a lab or factory, you must prioritize them. Therefore, remove all irrelevant emergencies and include any potential threats that you may face, such as biohazards, nearby industrial hazards, or severe weather specific to your region.
Printing and storage
Remember that power outages can make digital copies completely useless. So, keep printouts of the emergency action plan and laminate them to avoid any damage. Place them in easily accessible locations, such as near exits, at reception, and in break rooms, and ensure that all staff members are aware of their location.
Multilingual versions
If your staff includes people who speak limited English, then make translations of this emergency plan. You can translate some key sections or summarize the instructions.
Review and update regularly
An emergency action plan is a live document. Regularly review the document, ideally every 6 months. Also, do not forget to update changes when a staff member leaves, after a real emergency has happened, or there are changes to your location.
Practice and drill
Once you have customized the template according to your requirements, conduct drills to figure out any gaps and prepare the staff to remember their roles and procedures according to the plan.
While you cannot predict any crisis, you can be prepared for it. If you don’t have an emergency plan yet, this template for an emergency action plan can serve as your trusted support. Download it, customize it, and ensure a safer workplace!
