Importance of Having a Good Robust Crisis / Emergency Response System During a Major Project in Yemen

Abstract

Abstract The objective of this paper is to share the development of the crisis/ emergency response system and how it effectively helped save human lives during the project phase by timely evacuations when required Yemen LNG Company faced the challenge to undertake the largest ever industrial investment project in Yemen – namely constructing an LNG terminal and pipeline to provide gas to the international markets from the remotest and poorest areas of Yemen. Yemen is ranked among the poorest countries in the world according to the World Bank indicators. Constant security threats, coupled with the omnipresent tribal conflicts make it a high risk context in which to operate. In spite of these major hindrances, the Company was able to complete the project in a safe manner in spite of having mobilized significant man-power (the peak being over 13,000 personnel), The multinational team of up to 67 nationalities at site gelled together to produce the end result and are proud of having achieved an undertaking whose safety record is one of the best of any major project being undertaken by a member company of the Internaqtional Association of Oil & Gas Producers (OGP). This was achieved by having developed a crisis / emergency response system which was in place from the early stages of the project. Emergencies both within the project area and also for humanitarian reasons were dealt with in an effective manner. The systems were developed/ implemented and were exercised in a way such that there was a constant improvement process ongoing which incorporated the learnings at all times. The importance of having such systems in place cannot be overstated, especially in a country like Yemen where the state emergency response infrastructure and facilities are not available to be called upon. Not only did the project people benefit from this initiative, but people outside the project locus also benefited, as a number of emergencies were dealt with on humanitarian grounds. The paper highlights the processes that were followed in order to achieve the results of evacuating personnel safely to secure destinations.