--- title: "How to Plan and Run an Evacuation Drill in Australia" description: "Step-by-step guide to planning and running an evacuation drill in Australia under AS 3745. Covers warden roles, legal obligations, what to measure, common mistakes, and how evacuation diagrams support your drill program." canonical: https://evacpath.com/blog/how-to-plan-run-evacuation-drill-australia source: https://evacpath.com/blog/how-to-plan-run-evacuation-drill-australia --- # How to Plan and Run an Evacuation Drill in Australia > Step-by-step guide to planning and running an evacuation drill in Australia under AS 3745. Covers warden roles, legal obligations, what to measure, common mistakes, and how evacuation diagrams support your drill program. _EvacPath Team · 2026-04-07 · 8 min read_ An evacuation drill is not just a box-ticking exercise. Conducted properly, it is the most reliable way to identify gaps in your emergency procedures before a real emergency exposes them. Australian Standard [AS 3745](https://evacpath.com/blog/evacuation-diagram-requirements-australia):2010 (Planning for Emergencies in Facilities) sets out clear requirements for evacuation exercises, including minimum frequency, who must participate, and what the results should be used for. This guide walks through everything a building manager, safety officer, or employer needs to know to plan, run, and learn from an effective evacuation drill in Australia. ## What AS 3745 Requires AS 3745:2010 requires that evacuation exercises be conducted at least once every twelve months for most facilities. The standard uses the term "evacuation exercise" rather than "drill," reflecting the fact that the exercise should be treated as a genuine test of the emergency response system, not a scripted performance. The standard requires that every person in the facility participate in evacuation exercises. This includes all employees, contractors working on site, and where practicable, visitors and clients. The [Emergency Planning Committee](https://evacpath.com/blog/how-to-set-up-emergency-planning-committee) (EPC) is responsible for planning and evaluating each exercise. After each exercise, the EPC must review the results and update the emergency plan and evacuation diagrams if deficiencies are identified. For some higher-risk facilities, or where previous exercises have revealed serious deficiencies, more frequent exercises may be warranted. The EPC should document its reasoning for the frequency chosen and record this in the emergency plan. Some state-specific regulations and tenancy agreements may also impose exercise frequency requirements above the AS 3745 minimum. ## Legal Obligations for Employers Under WHS Evacuation exercises are not only an AS 3745 obligation; they are also a work health and safety (WHS) requirement. Under the model Work Health and Safety Act (adopted in all jurisdictions except Victoria and Western Australia, which have their own equivalent legislation), a person conducting a business or undertaking (PCBU) has a primary duty of care to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, the health and safety of workers while at work. Emergency preparedness, including evacuation procedures, is part of fulfilling that duty of care. If a worker is injured during an emergency because evacuation procedures were not properly practised, the PCBU may face investigation by the relevant WHS regulator. [Documentation of completed evacuation exercises](https://evacpath.com/blog/evacuation-drill-report-template-as-3745-australia), including date, participant numbers, evacuation time, and identified deficiencies, is an important part of demonstrating that the duty of care was discharged. In addition to general WHS obligations, certain industries and facility types carry specific regulatory requirements. Aged care facilities are subject to Aged Care Quality Standards requirements relating to emergency management. Childcare centres regulated under the National Quality Framework must maintain emergency and evacuation procedures and conduct regular practice drills. Hospitals and health facilities must comply with state health department emergency management frameworks. Employers in these sectors should ensure that their evacuation exercise program satisfies all applicable obligations, not merely the AS 3745 baseline. ## Roles During an Evacuation Exercise A successful evacuation exercise depends on clearly defined roles. AS 3745 establishes a hierarchy of emergency warden roles that should all be active during an exercise: - Chief Warden: Responsible for overall coordination of the evacuation, liaison with emergency services, and making decisions about whether to initiate a full or staged evacuation. During an exercise the chief warden runs the scenario and makes real-time decisions based on warden reports. - Deputy Chief Warden: Supports the chief warden and assumes command if the chief warden is unavailable. Should be tested in the chief warden role periodically. - Floor Wardens (or Area Wardens): Responsible for directing occupants on their floor or area to exits, conducting a sweep to confirm all persons have evacuated, and reporting to the chief warden. Floor wardens are the frontline of any evacuation. - First Aid Officers: Responsible for providing first aid to anyone injured during the evacuation. Should be positioned at the assembly area during the exercise. - Communications Warden: Manages communications between floor wardens and the chief warden, often via warden intercommunication points (WIPs) or two-way radios. Each warden role should be staffed by a trained person during the exercise. If a designated warden is absent on the day of the exercise, their alternate should step in. Testing the alternate wardens is itself a valuable outcome, since real emergencies rarely occur when all designated personnel are present. ## Step-by-Step: Planning the Drill A well-planned drill produces useful data. A poorly planned drill produces false confidence. The following steps apply to most commercial facilities: - Set the date and time at least two weeks in advance to allow warden briefings and to notify any contractors or visitors who will be present - Notify tenants and building management of the planned exercise so that vulnerable persons, mobility-impaired occupants, and visitors can be accounted for - Brief all wardens on their roles, the evacuation routes, the assembly area, and the specific scenario being tested - Prepare a scenario, for example, a simulated fire in a specific location that will challenge certain exit routes and require wardens to direct people via alternative exits - Assign an observer to each floor or area to record independent observations of warden performance, occupant behaviour, and timing - Confirm the assembly area is accessible and that a head count process is in place - Decide whether to notify emergency services in advance, in most cases, notifying the relevant fire brigade before the drill is strongly recommended to avoid an unnecessary emergency response ## Notifying Emergency Services This point deserves specific attention. When a building's fire alarm activates, even during a planned exercise, the fire brigade may respond unless they have been pre-notified. An unannounced response from the fire brigade wastes emergency resources, may result in charges in some jurisdictions, and can disrupt surrounding businesses and traffic. Before conducting a drill that involves activating the fire alarm system, contact your local fire brigade to notify them of the planned exercise, the date and time, and the expected duration. Most brigades are supportive of building exercise programs and will simply note the notification. Some may ask to send an observer, which can be a valuable source of feedback. Keep a record of the notification in your exercise documentation. ## Running the Drill: What to Measure During the drill, observers should be recording specific, measurable data. Subjective impressions are useful but not sufficient. The following metrics should be captured for every exercise: - Total evacuation time: from alarm activation to the last person reaching the assembly area - Floor or area clearance times: how long each warden took to clear and report their area - Assembly area head count: whether the count matched the number of persons known to be in the building - Warden response times: how quickly each warden assumed their post - Exit usage: which exits were used and whether any were found to be obstructed or inaccessible - Diagram reference behaviour: whether occupants referenced evacuation diagrams during the evacuation, and whether the diagrams were visible and legible - Communication failures: any breakdowns in the communication chain between floor wardens and the chief warden The total evacuation time is one of the most important metrics. AS 3745 does not prescribe a maximum evacuation time, but the EPC should set a target based on the building's size, occupancy, and layout, and assess performance against that target. A building where evacuation time is increasing from drill to drill has a problem that needs investigation. ## How Evacuation Diagrams Support the Drill Evacuation diagrams are not just wall decorations between drills. They are working documents that should be actively used during exercises. Wardens should be familiar with the diagrams for their area before the drill begins, and should use them during the exercise if there is any uncertainty about routes or equipment locations. One of the most valuable things a drill can reveal is whether occupants actually use the evacuation diagrams, and whether those diagrams are positioned where they can be referenced quickly under pressure. If observers note that occupants walked past a diagram without looking at it, or that a diagram was obscured by a pinboard or coat rack, these are actionable findings that should be corrected before the next exercise. Similarly, if the drill scenario involves directing people via an alternative exit because the primary exit is "blocked" (as part of the scenario), and the evacuation diagram does not clearly show the alternative exit, wardens and occupants will struggle. This is one of the most common reasons why post-drill reviews result in diagram updates. ## Common Mistakes During Drills Even well-intentioned drills frequently produce unreliable results because of avoidable errors. The most common mistakes include: - Not testing all exits. Running every drill via the same primary exit means the secondary exits are never tested - Allowing staff to "sit it out". AS 3745 requires all persons to participate; allowing exceptions defeats the purpose - Not conducting a proper head count at the assembly area. If you do not know how many people were in the building, you cannot confirm everyone has evacuated - Treating the drill as a surprise for occupants but not for wardens. Wardens need to know a drill is happening so they can be in position; occupants do not need to know the exact time - Failing to debrief wardens immediately after the exercise. The most accurate recall of what went wrong is within minutes of the event - Not documenting the results. Without documentation, the exercise has no compliance value and the findings cannot be tracked over time ## Partial vs Full Building Drills For large multi-tenancy buildings or buildings with 24-hour operations, a full simultaneous evacuation drill involving every occupant may not always be practical. AS 3745 acknowledges this by allowing for staged or partial exercises in some circumstances, provided the EPC documents its rationale and ensures that all areas of the building are tested across the rolling exercise program. A partial drill might involve evacuating one or two floors rather than the entire building. This can be effective for testing specific procedures or warden responses without disrupting the entire tenancy. However, partial drills should supplement rather than replace full building exercises. A building that has never conducted a full evacuation exercise has not adequately tested its emergency response capacity, regardless of how many partial drills have been completed. ## After the Drill: Review and Follow-Up The post-drill review is where the value of the exercise is realised. Without a structured review process, the data collected during the drill produces no improvement. The EPC should convene a debrief within 48 hours of the exercise while observations are fresh. The debrief should cover warden performance, occupant behaviour, assembly area management, communication effectiveness, evacuation time against target, and any equipment or infrastructure issues identified during the exercise. All findings should be recorded in writing and assigned to a responsible person with a completion date. If the drill has revealed that evacuation diagrams are inaccurate, out of date, poorly positioned, or not being used by occupants, updating or replacing the diagrams is a priority action. Diagrams that are known to be deficient and are not corrected represent a documented liability. Once a deficiency has been identified and recorded, the obligation to rectify it is clear. ## Get Your Evacuation Diagrams Ready Before the Next Drill If your last drill revealed diagram problems, or if your diagrams have not been updated since your last layout change, EvacPath can help. We produce AS 3745-compliant evacuation diagrams for Australian buildings of all types, entirely from your floor plans with no site visit required. Pricing is straightforward: A$70 per diagram, with a Basic Package at A$280 for up to 4 diagrams and a Standard Package at A$420 for up to 8 diagrams. Turnaround is 3 to 5 business days. Updated, accurate diagrams before your next drill means your exercise produces reliable data, and your wardens and occupants have the information they need to evacuate safely.