Kerslake has also recommended that terror attack training should include “realistic contingencies for public involvement in casualty care, treatment and evacuation”.
The calls were based on research by Dr Chris Cocking, a crowd behaviour expert and Senior Lecturer in the University of Brighton’s School of Health Sciences.
His research focused on the role of ‘zero-responders’ in relation to the 7/7 London Underground bombings and identified the public as a potential asset to the emergency services during major incidents.
Dr Cocking wrote: “Neglecting the potential spontaneous resilience of crowds in emergencies by the authorities could also be missing out on an opportunity to make use of a positive resource. The ability of people in emergencies to play a leadership role and coordinate mutual aid amongst survivors should not be underestimated.
“Rather than seeing the public as potential obstructions that need to be moved on, acknowledging and making provision for people’s willingness to help and direct others could provide the emergency services with a large pool of potential volunteers, who can act as ‘force multiplier’.”