During Bullseye’s first workshop, a procedure was developed with the purpose to provide the most efficient, effective and coordinated first response at the scene of any incident where chemical or biological materials may have been released, either deliberately or accidentally. The overall aim is to save life and minimize the impact of the incident on people, property, the community and the environment by enabling the first responders to work together quickly and efficiently whilst avoiding any unnecessary risks.

The procedure is intended for use by first responders from the various emergency services that have statutory responsibility for dealing with such incidents. First responders from other agencies may also be trained in this procedure to support and assist the response by the statutory emergency services (such as stewards at a public event or security guards at shopping malls).

The procedure is intended for use in the first 20 minutes of an incident so that first responders can complete a series of tactical actions and considerations to ensure that a structured, predictable and effective initial response is delivered at the scene while the emergency services are establishing the command, control and coordination of their agencies’ response.

The procedure assumes no other CBRNe training, knowledge or access to CBRNe personal protective equipment (PPE). Where first responders have any PPE it should be used in accordance with the training provided by their own agency and the manufacturer’s instructions.

The five stages of the first response procedure can be summarised as:

1. Recognise the possible presence and risk of hazardous materials
2. Remember to prioritise your personal safety
3. Report on the situation immediately
4. Respond using the ‘Steps 1 2 3 Plus’ principles
5. Remove the people from the hazard and the hazard from the people

January 21-22th, the second Project Steering Group Meeting took place in Madrid, on the premises of the Spanish Consortium Member INTA. During the meeting, the Steering Group looked back at the past year and evaluated the project’s activities of 2019. They took the opportunity to fine-tune the planning for 2020 as well.

The Steering Group wants to thank INTA for their generosity to host us for this meeting.

To ensure a harmonization of the procedures is response to chemical and biological threats, experts and practitioners will be brought together during four workshops in 2020. The first three workshops target respectively first, second and third line practitioners. The fourth and final workshop will bring together the results of the previous workshops in a multi-agency workshop to test the draft of the procedures on their interoperability in a tabletop exercise.

The calendar for the workshops is the following:

Date	Description	Who?	Where?
17/02/2020 – 21/02/2020	Workshop 1: 1st line practitioners	Non-specialist police, emergency medical services, fire fighters and civil protection	Poland
20/04/2020 – 24/04/2020	Workshop 2: 2nd line practitioners	Military/defense and specialist police	Slovakia
10/05/2020 – 14/05/2020	Workshop 3: 3rd line practitioners	DVI/forensics and  laboratories	Spain
14/09/2020 – 18/09/2020	Workshop 4: multi-agency workshop	Selection of practitioners from all disciplines	Belgium

If you have questions regarding the workshops or if you would like further information, please contact the coordinating team on Bullseye@ibz.fgov.be