Whether you're a "doomsday prepper", average citizen, or live in the snow country, there will come a time when you will need to use emergency lighting. The insides of buildings become very dark and difficult to navigate when the power goes out. Emergency lighting, powered by battery packs, are designed to automatically come on when this happens. Although they may take a few seconds to activate, they will provide some light during an emergency.

Placement

The placement of such lighting is very important. Lighting should be near an exit, first aid station, fire extinguishers, stairways, machinery and anything else that may be of danger to the personnel of the company. It's a good idea to periodically review the placement and check the battery packs in the building to ensure the safety of the employees.

Remain Calm

It's important to remain calm when the power goes out in a workplace environment or home environment. The first thing to do is assess the situation and gather everyone together. Keeping in mind that there is safety in numbers try to be as organised as possible and locate the lighted exit signs for the building.

Exiting The Building

Again, it's important to remain calm. Using the exit signs as a guide, which light up with a battery power pack, proceed to the nearest exit. Don't panic and try to keep everyone else calm during this exit as well. Injuries happen when panic sets in. If one exit is blocked, calmly and quickly proceed to the next available exit. It's a good idea to familiarise oneself with all of the exits in a building prior to needing them.

Emergency Plan

Most major companies have an emergency plan in place. It's important to make sure to review this with employees on a semi-annual basis and any time a new employee comes into the company. Some companies designate a safety officer for such purposes while others will have the supervisors automatically in charge of such emergent situations.

Meeting Area

Once the employees have navigated to the outside of the building using the emergency lighting, it's important to have a meeting area. A supervisor or safety officer should have a master roster that lists all of the employees on duty that day and be able to check to make sure everyone is out of the building safely. If not, then employees will know who is missing and the appropriate personnel can go back into the building to find out if the person is okay. Knowing the general area to search for the person is important as well.

Planning for emergencies is important for any company. Hoping to never have to use such emergency plans is everyone's dream.