Incident Manual- Critical Incident Manual for Emergency Response

Incident Manual-Critical Incident Manual for Emergency Response

Introduction

This is important, particularly to our organization as the security director, to establish an incident and command response structure for the mitigation process in case of emergencies. This manual responds to and provides guidelines and information to responder personnel, on activation, rapid deployment, and management of incidents. It sets forth the structure, which is in line with the Incident Command System, including operations, planning, administration, and logistics at four levels of response.

Incident Command Structure Organizational Chart

It is imperative to stress that the management of every incident depends on an efficient incident command structure. Informed below, the organizational chart delineates the hierarchical order of the roles and responsibilities followed within the framework of the ICS.

Organizational Chart for Incident Command Structure

Incident Commander

└─ Command Staff

├── Public Information Officer

├── Safety Officer

└── Liaison Officer

└─ General Staff

└─ Operations Section Chief

└─ Branch Directors

└─ Divisions/Groups

└─ Task Forces/Strike Teams

└─ Planning Section Chief

├── Resources Unit Leader

├── Situation Unit Leader

├── Documentation Unit Leader

└─ Demobilization Unit Leader

└─ Logistics Section Chief

└── Service Branch

└── Communications Unit Leader

└── Medical Unit Leader

└── Food Unit Leader

└── Support Branch

└── Supply Unit Leader

└── Facilities Unit Leader

└─ Ground Support Unit Leader

└─ Finance/Administration Section Chief

├── Time Unit Leader

├── Procurement Unit Leader

├── Compensation/Claims Unit Leader

└── Cost Unit Leader

Induvial or task assignments by Function

Incident Commander (IC): Tasks include incident assignment, the definition of incident objectives and strategies, approval of Incident Action Plans, establishing Incident Command Post, issuing demobilization orders as required, ensuring the completion of after-action reports, approving media’s access to information, coordinating the efforts of the General staff and the Command, granting request for resources authorize usage of auxiliary staff/ volunteers and assurance of personnel safety (FEMA, 2017).

Command Staff:

Public Information Officer (PIO): Conducts media/public communications; develops press briefings; and approves news releases (FEMA, 2017). Public information officers also provide incident staff with information on the incident; keep up-to-date information, displays, and or summaries about the incident; monitor and forward media reports that could help with incident preparation.
Safety Officer (SO): Monitors safety conditions and developments; develops safety measures; reviews IAPs for safety implications; and investigates accidents/incidents (FEMA, 2017). The security officer is also responsible for launching an initial inquiry into incidents that occur within the incident area. Other tasks include reviewing and approving the medical plan and assigning assistants who are capable of assessing special hazards.
Liaison Officer (LNO): Acts as liaison for cooperating agencies, maintains assisting agency list, and coordinates interagency contacts. Other roles include: participating in planning meetings by presenting the current resource status, including agency restrictions and capabilities; informing and preparing agency mobilization requirements; and monitoring incident operations to detect current or possible inter-organizational concerns (FEMA, 2017).

General Staff

Operations Section Chief: Responsible for: Managing tactical operations, developing and implementing operational portions of the IAP requesting additional resources, and ensuring that tactical operations are performed safely (FEMA, 2017). Communicate closely with IC, subordinate operations personnel, and other involved agencies.

Planning Section Chief: Responsible for: Providing planning services, collecting and evaluating incident data, preparing IAPs, maintaining situational awareness, and managing the demobilization plan (FEMA, 2017). Other responsibilities include: Creating a schedule for information requirements and reporting by units (e.g., Situation Units, Resources Units); Forming and disbanding task forces and strike teams (also known as law enforcement resource teams) that aren’t involved in operations; Gathering information about alternative strategies; Analyzing whether specific resources are needed; Setting up specialized systems to collect data (for example, weather); Forecasting potential incidents periodically; Updating incident status when significant changes occur.

Logistics Section Chief: Responsibilities: Provides incident support needs in facilities management, transportation, communications, supplies, food, and medical services, and develops the logistics portion of the IAP (FEMA, 2017).

Finance/Administration Section Chief: Responsibilities: Manages financial aspects of the incident, provides cost analysis, ensures compensation claims are addressed, and oversees timekeeping and procurement.

Crisis, Disaster, and Emergency

Crisis: An event or situation of a substantial nature that would immediately create a threat either to the health, safety, or welfare of persons or that of the organization. Crises require immediate action to mitigate impact and prevent escalation.

Disaster: A disaster is normally an event of natural origin that causes widespread destruction, disruption, and death and thereby necessitates extraordinary responses. The events may be because of natural causes like earthquakes or hurricanes, or because of human activities such as industrial accidents or terrorism.

Emergency: An emergency is any sudden unwanted incident that requires urgent response to reduce its consequence on life, property, or the environment. Typically, emergencies are not as severe as disasters but may require rapid decisive action to manage to keep situations at bay.

Critical Infrastructure Sectors

The following table lists the 16 critical infrastructure sectors as determined by the Department of Homeland Security DHS.

S/No	Sector	Description
1.	Chemical	Production and storage of hazardous chemicals
2.	Commercial Facilities	Public places, office buildings, sports arenas
3.	Communications	Telecommunications infrastructure, satellite systems
4.	Critical Manufacturing	Production that is important to the continuity of a nation; such products can be metals, machinery, and electronic materials
5.	Dams	Water storage, power generation, and flood control
6.	Defense Industrial Base	Production and supply chain for military means and technology
7.	Emergency Services	Police, fire, EMS, and other Emergency response activities
8.	Energy	Electricity, oil, and natural gas infrastructure
9.	Financial Services	Banking, investment, and insurance sectors
10.	Food and Agriculture	Production, processing, and distribution of products relating to food and agriculture
11.	Government Facilities	Federal, state, local government buildings and facilities
12.	Healthcare and Public Health	Hospitals, clinics, public health organizations
13.	Information Technology	IT services, hardware, software, and internet infrastructure
14.	Nuclear Reactors, Materials, Waste	Nuclear power plants, radioactive materials, and waste management
15.	Transportation Systems	Aviation, maritime, rail, highways, public transit
16.	Water and Wastewater Systems	Water treatment, supply, and wastewater management systems

Source, (CISA, 2022)

Incident Command System Forms Needed for the Incident Action Plan (IAP)

Forms ICS

ICS 201 – Incident Briefing

Purpose: It gives the Incident Commander and Command/General Staff the basic information about the incident situation and the resources that are assigned to the incident (Incident Command System (ICS) Forms, n.d.).

ICS 202 – Incident Objectives

Purpose: It outlines the incident objectives and emphasis or command priorities and safety concerns for the period of operation.

ICS 203 – Organization Assignment List

Purpose: Lists all incident management positions and who are assigned to fill them.

ICS 204 – Assignment List

Documents assignments and resources for each division or group for the operational period (Incident Command System (ICS) Forms, n.d.).

ICS 205 – Incident Communications Plan

Contains information about the communication equipment and networks available to be used during the incident

ICS 206 – Medical Plan

Communicates information about incident medical aid stations, transportation services, hospitals, and where medical emergencies will be treated.

ICS 207 – Incident Organization Chart

Purpose: Provides a graphic perspective of the ICS organizational structure with personnel identified by name for each position (Incident Command System (ICS) Forms, n.d.).

ICS 208 – Safety Message/Plan

Purpose: Provides safety messages and describes safety plan for the incident.

ICS 209 – Incident Status Summary

Purpose: Appropriate for incident status information that will be used in operational planning and as part of media releases.

ICS 211 – Check-In/Check-Out List

Purpose: Lists arrival and departure dates and times for personnel and equipment at the incident site (Incident Command System (ICS) Forms, n.d.).

ICS 214 – Activity Log

Service purpose: Documents information about notable activities at the incident site, including actions taken, resources used, and incident progress.

ICS 215 – Operational Planning Worksheet

Service purpose: Captures information about resources and tactics to be used during the next operational period (Incident Command System (ICS) Forms, n.d.).

ICS 215A – Incident Action Plan Safety Analysis

Service purpose: Identifies and assesses hazards and risks to operational resources; describes actions to be taken to minimize those risks.

ICS 218 – Support Vehicle/Equipment Inventory

Purpose: This form lists all vehicles and apparatus assigned to the incident (Incident Command System (ICS) Forms, n.d.).

ICS 220 – Air Operations Summary

Purpose: Documents air operations including aircraft assignments and their missions.

ICS 221 – Demobilization Checkout

Purpose: Ensures that resources checking out of the incident have completed all necessary tasks and documentation.

Conclusion

This critical incident manual is a resource document that provides responder personnel all relevant information for the rapid activation and deployment of responder resources in an emergency. This incident and command response structure lay down an effective coordination and management of resources, promoting unity of effort for a unified response. Appreciation of the principles and basics of Incident Command System, coupled with good conversance with the roles, responsibilities, and accountability of each position, relativizes our organization on how best to handle crises, disasters, and emergencies in order to safeguard lives and property.

This document is to be reviewed periodically for revising and updating the information to develop an updated strategy based on the change in organizational hierarchy, structure, and personnel, or the latest practices evolved in emergency management. We can mitigate the impacts of any incident effectively by using a state of such readiness and continuous refinement of response capabilities to ensure a safe and secure environment for our community.

References

CISA. (2022). Critical Infrastructure Sectors. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency. https://www.cisa.gov/topics/critical-infrastructure-security-and-resilience/critical-infrastructure-sectors

FEMA. (2017). National Incident Management System (3rd ed.). Retrieved from https://www.fema.gov/sites/default/files/2020-07/fema_nims_doctrine-2017.pdf

Incident Command System (ICS) Forms. (n.d.). Dec.alaska.gov. Retrieved June 23, 2024, from https://dec.alaska.gov/spar/ppr/response-resources/ics-forms/

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