Bexley Council staff take part in Olympic 'major incident' simulation (From News Shopper)

Bexley Council staff take part in Olympic 'major incident' simulation

7:00am Wednesday 8th February 2012 in Bexley By Alan Woods

THE PRESSURE of the Olympics arrived early at Bexley Council last month as staff took part in a major incident simulation exercise.

A temporary borough emergency control centre was opened to deal with an ‘imaginary’ incident whilst a number of different games-related issues were fired at workers simultaneously.

The exercise was designed to test the command, control and co-ordination of employees in preparation for the games, which are just six months away.

Taking part in the fake operation on January 24, staff dealt with a barrage of more than 70 messages relating to the incident while aiming to operate business as usual.

Council leader Councillor Teresa O'Neill said: “We want to reassure residents and businesses we’re doing all we can to prepare for the games and we encourage residents to get involved and enjoy all the Olympics has to offer.

“At the same time we recognise involvement is a matter of choice and we are committed to providing as much information as possible to those who choose to simply continue with their day to day lives.”

Preparations are also under way for the arrival of the Olympic Torch Relay on July 22.