Key Personnel/Identification of Roles and Responsibilities

Overview

Many incidents, whether major or minor, require an organized response to handle effectively. To coordinate and effectively use all the available resources, a formalized system for organization must be in place. A formalized system lends consistency to the way team members and agencies function in an emergency, and it fosters efficiency by eliminating the need to “reinvent the wheel” for each new emergency.

It is essential that response organizations have a command structure in place before an incident occurs. Such a system will help avoid problems in communication and coordination and will facilitate the protection of life and property.

The Incident Command System (ICS) achieves these goals by pre-establishing a command structure that can be used for any incident. ICS identifies the Incident Commander, the Command Staff, and the General Staff positions.

The ICS organizational structure may include five functional areas:

• Command : Responsible for overall command of the incident. May include Command Staff positions responsible for:
  • Safety
  • Liaison
  • Information
• Operations : Responsible for all tactical operations at the incident.
• Planning : Responsible for collection, evaluation, dissemination, and use of information about incident development and the status of resources.
• Logistics : Responsible for providing facilities, services, and materials for the incident.
• Finance/Administration : Responsible for all costs and financial considerations of the incident.