The world is becoming more hazardous as natural and social processes combine to create increased vulnerability and risk. The response is to develop emergency plans, but there is little advice available on how to do so. This book covers the structure, content and strategic direction of such emergency plans.

'In his third related publication, How to Write an Emergency Plan, David Alexander once again provides an engaging and principles-based book, suitable for the novice and experienced emergency, disaster or crisis practitioner…

In this book, Alexander not only considers the range of traditional circumstances, scenarios and hazard types (or sources) including natural hazards (fire and flood, for example) but extends to those that are less frequent, yet increasingly appearing on the risk profiles of governments. These include critical infrastructure failure, animal emergency diseases and human (public) health emergencies. In doing so, the book underlines the importance of acknowledging that while a type or classification of emergency, disaster and crisis may yield some common characteristics or indicate a consistent response, they are each different or unique and should be treated as such.

Pleasingly, How to Write an Emergency Plan explores the contemporary process of identifying lessons and their translation to recommendations and practice. The value of a lessons-management approach cannot be underestimated and should feature as a component of all emergency, disaster or crisis management systems, plans and arrangements.

Not satisfied with delivering a useful resource for an emergency, disaster or crisis planner, in his conclusion, Alexander looks forward and provides the reader with an insight as to how the role of a planner may be perceived under a variety of more than probable scenarios.

I congratulate David Alexander on producing an very valuable resource and commend its reading to those with an emerging or established emergency, disaster or crisis planning role.'
Australian Journal of Emergency Management

‘Alexander’s (2016) newest book, How to Write an Emergency Plan, provides readers with practical advice about emergency planning. In this regard, the content of the book is as much about planning processes as it is about the content and structure of an emergency plan. This new book expands on Alexander’s previous work on the subject of emergency planning…While Alexander is a Professor of Risk and Disaster Reduction at University of College London and a distinguished academic, his newest book is written for a lay audience and is intended to function as a guide for anyone, anywhere, who has a responsibility for emergency planning. The book is generally jargon free and key terms are defined and topics are properly introduced, making the book valuable for those without formal education or training relating to emergency management. While the book draws from both research and practice knowledge about emergency planning, the book is written in a conversational style with limited references to academic literature…Throughout the book, Alexander presents principles of practice that apply to emergency planning regardless of the context. The principles provide a concise summary of generic rules that should inform emergency planning. An example of a principle offered in the Introduction chapter is, “emergency planning is about helping to create a common language and culture, and common objectives, for the organizations and people who respond to emergencies” (Alexander, 2016, p. 7). Most but not all sections in the book offer one or more principles that help to summarize and reinforce key best practices.Overall, the book provides considerable guidance related to developing and writing an emergency plan. While noting that context matters and explaining how it matters (e.g., local hazards, legislation), Alexander’s approach to how to develop and write an emergency plan is for the most part, context-independent. Further, while the book recognizes mandated responsibility for emergency planning by civil authorities, the idea of emergency management as being a distributed function within society, with other entities (e.g., industry, schools) also having responsibility for emergency planning is acknowledged. In this regard, there is good value in Alexander’s newest book for a broad audience who have interest in or responsibility for emergency planning.’Recovery Diva, May 2017

David Alexander is Professor of Risk and Disaster Reduction at University College London. He is also Visiting Professor at the Universities of Bournemouth and Northumbria (UK), Affiliated Professor at the University of Lund (Sweden) and Research Fellow at the Global Risk Forum GRF Davos (Switzerland). Professor Alexander is Vice-President of the Institute of Civil Protection and Emergency Management and Editor-in-Chief of the International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction.