Exercise Heartbeat – Crowne Plaza Changi Airport Partners Singapore Police Force, Singapore Civil Defence Force And Ministry Of Manpower In Counter-Terrorism Exercise

A counter-terrorism exercise codenamed “Heartbeat” was held at Crowne Plaza Changi Airport on 17 May 2019. The exercise was jointly organised by the Singapore Police Force (SPF) and Crowne Plaza Changi Airport, supported by the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) and the Ministry of Manpower (MOM). Member of Parliament for Holland-Bukit Timah Group Representative Constituency, and Chairperson of Government Parliamentary Committee (Home Affairs and Law), Mr Christopher De Souza, observed the exercise. Crowne Plaza Changi Airport is the first hotel in Singapore to participate in Exercise Heartbeat.

The recent attacks at hotels and churches in Sri Lanka are a stark reminder that the threat of terrorism remains high. The exercise at Crowne Plaza Changi Airport highlighted the importance of a robust contingency response plan for hotels against such threats. This includes ensuring that evacuation and lockdown procedures are in place, as well as establishing clear communication channels with the authorities.

SPF and MOM have been working closely with hotel industry partners in Singapore to enhance their emergency preparedness and security measures against security threats. This is important, to ensure the safety and security of hotel staff and their guests.

Bruno Cristol, General Manager of Crowne Plaza Changi Airport said, “The safety of our guests and staff is our number one priority. As part of InterContinental Hotels Group’s global network of more than 5,600 hotels, we have an established risk management process and framework in place which all of our colleagues are regularly trained in. Participating in this exercise raises our level of emergency preparedness and reminds us that safety and security cannot be taken for granted. It enabled us to test our protocols and procedures along with SPF, MOM and SCDF.” The hotel also uses resources from the SGSecure@Workplaces programme to train their staff to be vigilant against the terror threat and be familiar with the emergency response procedures.

To help organisations better prepare for contingencies such as a terror attack, the SGSecure Programme Office, together with SPF and MOM, has developed a contingency planning checklist. This checklist supplements the contingency planning and protective security advisory which was launched in 2017 to guide organisations in mitigating the risk and impact of a terror attack. Businesses are encouraged to come on-board the SGSecure@Workplaces programme and raise their workplace preparedness in response to terror threats. Businesses should also put in place continuity plans to enable their operations to recover and return to normalcy quickly.

Community stakeholders and businesses may refer to existing resources at the websites listed below for more information: