Safety and emergency preparedness at events

Below you will find five easy ways to improve safety and security at your event: 

1. Get to know the venue 

Talk to the building operations personnel about escape routes, assembly points and evacuation procedures in case of an emergency. They can also help you with the layout, so you can make sure that that furniture and furnishings are set up in compliance with fire regulations. Discuss how many people the venue can accommodate safely and familiarise yourself with the area, including where the nearest defibrillator and other safety equipment are located. Make sure that other key employees or co-organisers are familiar with the most important procedures. 

2. Assign responsibility 

Decide and communicate who has primary responsibility if an emergency occurs during your event, such as a fire, an accident or sudden illness occurs during the event. It is crucial that chains of command are established before an incident occurs to ensure quick decision-making and immediate action.

3. Make a plan for communication and risk assessment 

Think through how you will communicate with participants and staff in an emergency. Make sure relevant contact information is readily available and easy to find.

If the event’s topic or speaker are potentially controversial, you should also think about whether you need to take any special security precautions. Any concerns should be discussed with your immediate manager, or where relevant with the local police (in Aarhus, the East Jutland Police). AU event organisers can contact the East Jutland police at [email protected] for advice on how best to handle their specific situation. In these cases it will typically also be relevant to inform Anders Moestrup, emergency response coordinator at AU (contact information under 'Contact').

4. Locate the nearest defibrillator and bring a first aid kit
Find out where the nearest defibrillator is located before the event. Read more about the 60 defibrillators at AU. It’s also a good idea to makes sure a first aid kit is available. 

5. Evaluate and learn from the experience 

After the event, it’s a good idea to review your security procedures and consider how you might improve safety and securitynext time. 

When booking rooms for events and conferences at AU, the organiser is required to provide accurate information about how the space will be used and how many people are expected to attend. This is necessary to ensure that the venue is suitable for the event, with regard to both logistics and safety.

When setting up the space, you are under an obligation to follow instructions and guidelines in terms of capacity, furniture layout and fire safety. If you want to set things up differently than the approved layout, the changes must be agreed upon and approved in advance by building services personnel.

If you are unsure about the rules or your options, contact the building services personnel. They will able to advise on how things should be set up and help make sure all guidelines are complied with.

The same guidelines apply to events and activities hosted by students.

As part of good safety and emergency precautions, it is recommended that relevant employees have up-to-date first aid skills. You can book first aid courses for entire teams or units through HR. Learn more and register on the HR first aid page.

In the event of a force majeure situation, any agreed upon obligations between Aarhus University, the organiser and the participants are suspended.

We will always attempt to minimise any losses. Note that Aarhus University cannot be held responsible for external expenses such as accommodation or transport.

Force majeure covers, but is not limited to:

• Extreme weather events or natural disasters
• Government imposed regulations or restrictions
• Prolonged power cuts or disruptions of critical infrastructure
• Severe technical problems or cyber attacks
• Fires or explosions
•  Labour disputes or strikes
• Local, national or global crises
• Epidemics or health emergencies that affect the public
• Security threats including sabotage, terrorist attacks or war

In the event of a force majeure incident, Aarhus University will inform affected organisers and participants as soon as possible.

Special conditions may apply to some events. These conditions will be indicated during registration.

Below you will find useful links related to safety and emergency preparedness for events and conferences: 

• AU’s university-wide emergency response plan
• Nearest defibrillator
• 60 defibrillators at AU
• HR first aid page
• Conference Handbook (find answers and inspiration in the Conference Handbook when planning events and conferences)