THE BBC has been meeting the emergency services, local authorities and health bodies to discuss how to advise the public in the event of a major incident.
A summit was held at the Beacon Hill transmitter base, near Frodsham, involving county police, fire and ambulance resources, as well as Cheshire County Council and the Countess of Chester Hospital.
The BBC Connecting Communities initiative aims to ensure the public has the information it needs during a civil emergency such as a terrorist attack, chemical incident or flood.
It seeks to encourage planners to work more closely with broadcasters in the preparation of strategies for communicating essential advice.
Chris Samuels, of Cheshire County Council's emergency planning department, said: 'The whole thing is about warning the public as quickly as possible after an incident has occurred.
'The message is 'go in, stay in and tune in'. That's what the public should do for any one of the incidents - get indoors and off the streets, close doors and windows and tune into your local radio station - for this area, that's BBC Radio Merseyside.'
Cheshire's large petro-chemical industry is what gives people in this area most cause for concern.
There are fears about a plant explosion and the potential release of toxic smoke and gases over residential areas, with the need to evacuate whole neighbourhoods in the worst-case scenario.
BBC local radio and their suppliers of information can get safety messages out in minutes.
