INCIDENT COMMAND SYSTEM

Supplemented by Ryann U. Castro

 WHAT IS THE INCIDENT COMMAND SYSTEM?
The Incident Command System (ICS) is a model for
command, control, and coordination of emergency response at the site
level.

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 LESSONS WITHOUT FORMAL ICS

World Trade Centre

 “The Police and Fire
Departments did not work
together that day, and they
rarely did before.” (Command
and Control issue)

 “Other firefighters appear to

have been using one radio
channel while evacuation
orders went out over another.”
(Communications issue)

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 LESSONS WITHOUT FORMAL ICS

Firestorm 2003
 “The criticisms the Review
Team heard ranged from too
many bosses, to no one
running the ship, to lack of
coordination, to jurisdictions
and responsibilities were
confusing.” (Command &
Control issues)

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 WHY USE THE INCIDENT COMMAND SYSTEM?
The same ICS structure can also be used to coordinate site support at
an Emergency Operations Centre or regional/provincial support
activity, or national support activity.

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 WHO USES THE INCIDENT COMMAND SYSTEM?

• RCMP • Industry
• Municipal Police • Military
• Ambulance Services • First Nations Groups
• Fire Services • Hospitals
• Airport Authorities • Labor Unions
• Transport Authorities • Sheriff Services
• Food Inspectors • Correctional Centers
• Border Services • Schools
• Health Providers • Shopping Centers

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 HISTORY OF ICS

FIRESCOPE
Wildland fires in the 1970s:
• Multiple agencies involved
• Organizational difficulties experienced
• Result was the development of the original ICS

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 REOCCURRING PROBLEM AREAS:

 Terminology
 Organizational structure
 Communications
 Action plans
 Span of control
 Incident facilities
 Resource management

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INCIDENT COMMAND SYSTEM
KEY POINTS
 ICS PRINCIPLES

1. Five Primary Functions

2. Establishing and Transferring Command
3. Single or Unified Command Structure
4. Management by Objectives
5. Consolidated Incident Action Plans
6. Comprehensive Resource Management
7. Unity and Chain of Command
8. Manageable Span of Control
9. Modular Organization
10. Personnel Accountability
11. Common Terminology
12. Integrated Communications

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 ICS RESPONSE GOALS

1. Provide for safety and health of all responders

2. Save lives
3. Reduce suffering
4. Protect public health
5. Protect government infrastructure
6. Protect property
7. Protect the environment
8. Reduce economic and social losses

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 FIVE PRIMARY ICS MANAGEMENT FUNCTIONS

Command

Finance/
Operations Planning Logistics
Admin

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 ICS RESPONSE FUNCTIONS

Command  The “Boss”

Operations  The “Do-ers”
Planning  The “Thinkers”
Logistics  The “Getters”
Finance/Admin  The “Payers”

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 THE WEDDING…
Drinks Accommodations
Bridal Shower
Gifts Cake
Billing Invitations Clothing (Her)
Rehearsal Hair Styling Bachelor Party

Photos Reception Music

Licenses
Rings
Food Clothing (Him)
Ceremony
Transportation Rentals Venues Flowers
Service Providers Travel
Registry
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 THE WEDDING…

Potential problem areas?

 Organization
 Communication
 Planning
 Span of control
 Facilities
 Resources
 Costs

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 THE WEDDING…
Drinks Accommodations
Bridal Shower
Gifts Cake
Billing Invitations Clothing (Her)
Rehearsal Hair Styling Bachelor Party

Photos Reception Music

Licenses
Rings
Food Clothing (Him)
Ceremony
Transportation Rentals Venues Flowers
Service Providers Travel
Registry
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 “OPERATION BRIDEZILLA”
Command

Finance/
Operations Planning Logistics
Admin
Bridal Shower Flowers Transportation Vendors
Bachelor Party Food Travel Services
Rehearsal Registry Accommodation Insurance
Ceremony Music Licenses Rentals
Reception Seating Venues Billing
Invitations
Cake
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 THE WEDDING…

Practical examples of ICS usage…

 Social events
 Athletic tournaments
 Demonstrations
 Work stoppages

ICS is “organized common sense”

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 COMMAND

 Sets objectives and priorities

 Responsible for all incident or

event activity

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 SINGLE COMMAND

 The Incident Commander is

responsible for all incidents or event
activity.

 There will always be an Incident

Commander.

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 UNIFIED COMMAND

A B
B-ICS

A-ICS

C
C-ICS

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 UNIFIED COMMAND

A B

A B C

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 TRANSFER OF COMMAND

As an incident grows and becomes more complex, a transfer of

command to a more qualified person may take place.

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 COMMAND STAFF POSITIONS

IC

Information Officer

Safety Officer

Liaison Officer

Operations Planning Logistics Finance/Admin

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 INFORMATION OFFICER

The Information Officer:

 Coordinates the release of
information to the public and
responders.

 Is responsible for interface with

the media.

 Works in cooperation with the

E/DOC Information Officer.

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 SAFETY OFFICER

The Safety Officer:

 Formulates measures to protect
personnel safety

 Takes immediate action to stop

or prevent unsafe acts when
conditions or time do not permit
going through lines of authority

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 SAFETY OFFICER?

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 LIAISON OFFICER

The Liaison Officer:

 Acts as the point of contact for
assisting or cooperating
agencies

 Acts as a diplomat

 Works with private contractors

to address needs

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 AGENCY REPRESENTATIVES

An Agency Representative is an individual

assigned to an incident from an assisting or
cooperating agency
(Who has been delegated full authority to make
decisions on all matters affecting that agency’s
participation at the incident).

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 GENERAL STAFF POSITIONS

IC

Information Officer

Safety Officer

Liaison Officer

Operations Planning Logistics Finance/Admin

Section Section Section Section

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 OPERATIONS

IC

Information Officer

Safety Officer

Liaison Officer

Operations Planning Logistics Finance/Admin

Section Section Section Section

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 OPERATIONS

• Conducts tactical
operations

• Develops the
tactical objectives
and organization

• Directs all
Resources

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 PLANNING

IC

Information Officer

Safety Officer

Liaison Officer

Operations Planning Logistics Finance/Admin

Section Section Section Section

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 PLANNING

 Collects, evaluates, and

displays incident information
 Maintains status of
resources
 Prepares Incident Action
Plan (IAP)
 Prepares other incident
related documentation

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 INCIDENT PLANNING CONSIDERATIONS

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 DIVIDING AN INCIDENT

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 INCIDENT PLANNING CONSIDERATIONS

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 INCIDENT PLANNING CONSIDERATIONS

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 DIVIDING AN INCIDENT

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 LOGISTICS

IC

Information Officer

Safety Officer

Liaison Officer

Operations Planning Logistics Finance/Admin

Section Section Section Section

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 LOGISTICS

 Provides services and support to meet the incident- or event’s

needs
 Provides resources
 Provides other services

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 FINANCE/ADMINISTRATION

IC

Information Officer

Safety Officer

Liaison Officer

Operations Planning Logistics Finance/Admin

Section Section Section Section

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 FINANCE/ADMINISTRATION

 Keeps track of incident related

expenses

 equipment records

 procurement contracts

 other financial related expenses

of the incident

 Monitors costs

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 MANAGEMENT BY OBJECTIVES

Objectives

 Attainable
 Measurable
 Flexible

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 RESOURCE MANAGEMENT IN ICS
Single Resource Strike Team
Includes Personnel and Equipment Combination of same kind and type

Task Force
Combination of Single Resources

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 RESOURCE STATUS CONDITIONS IN ICS

Available

Assigned Out of Service

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 UNITY AND CHAIN OF COMMAND

OPERATIONS
SECTION

STAGING
AREA
In ICS every
SPECIAL
BRANCHES
OPERATIONS
individual has a
DIVISIONS GROUPS
designated
Task Forces Task Forces

Strike Teams Strike Teams

supervisor
Single Single
Resources Resources

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 MODULAR ORGANIZATION

Command
Command Staff

Operations

Branch 1 Other
Branches

Division/
A B C Medical Group

Resources

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 SPAN OF CONTROL

Span of control is the number of resources

that one supervisory level can effectively
manage.

In ICS span of control ranges from 3 to 7.

(1:3, 1:7)

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 COMMON TERMINOLOGY
Use ICS position titles:
 In multi-agency incidents to provide standardization.
 All ICS communications should use clear text (that is, plain
language). Do not use radio codes, agency-specific
codes, acronyms, or other jargon.
 In ordering resources to ensure understanding.
 To allow most qualified personnel to be used.

“I don’t have a qualified IC for this incident.

Does your agency have one that could be assigned?”

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 INCIDENT COMMAND POST
 Location where primary command functions are performed

 Only one per incident

 May be located with other facilities

 Normally not relocated

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 STAGING AREAS
 Temporary locations for resources awaiting assignments
 Resources on a three minute available status
 May include fueling and sanitation
 Staging Area Manager is required
 May be designated for certain kinds of resources

S
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 HELIBASE/S
 Location where helicopters may be
parked, maintained, fueled, and loaded

H
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 HELISPOT/S
 Temporary locations where helicopters can safely land and take
off
 Used to load or off-load personnel, equipment, and supplies

H-3

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 CAMPS/BASES
 Temporary locations to provide services to incident personnel
 Primary support activity
 Logistics Section located at Base
 Out-of-service equipment and personnel normally located here

C B
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 ICS MULTI-LEVEL RESPONSE

8. Manage Additional Resources

7. Establish Additional Facilities

6. Review and Modify the

Incident Action Plan
5. Develop Appropriate
Organization
4. Manage Resources

3. Organize The Site

2. Determine Initial Objectives,

Strategies & Tactics
1. Establish Initial Command

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 CONSIDER

The “Summit of the Americas” in

Quebec City required the
registration of 7500 residents,
deployment of over 6000 riot police,
1000 workers to build a 4 km fence
to contain 25 - 60,000 protesters at a
cost of $100 million.

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 EMERGENCY/DISASTER OPERATIONS CENTER

Key Points

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 EMERGENCY RESPONSE MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

 Comprehensive management scheme

 Ensures coordinated & organized Provincial
response & recovery
 Common response culture
 Plans are similar
 Only one “system” to learn
 Eliminates duplication

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 MULTI-LEVEL RESPONSE STRUCTURE

ICS principles are used at all levels.

NATIONAL

REGIONAL/PROVINCIAL

SITE SUPPORT LEVEL

E/DOC

SITE LEVEL
INCIDENT COMMAND POST

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 QUESTIONS?

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