Emergency Response and Incident Management
Emergencies reward preparation and punish improvisation. Candidates must know the emergency action plan for their site: evacuation routes, assembly areas, shelter-in-place locations, alarm points, and the chain of command. The core sequence for any incident is assess, alert, act, and account-size up the situation without becoming a casualty, notify the right people (police, fire, EMS, site management) with clear information, take the safe action within your training, and then account for people.
Key concepts: fire response (pull alarm, evacuate, never use elevators, never re-enter); medical emergencies (scene safety first, call EMS, provide only the aid you are trained and authorized to give, and know your Good Samaritan and consent rules); active threat (the run-hide-fight framework, and the guard's role as a reporter and guide rather than a solo pursuer unless trained and equipped); bomb threats and suspicious packages (do not touch, isolate, evacuate, notify); and crowd and access control during an incident. Understand unified command-when police or fire arrive, they take command of the scene and the guard supports them.
Traps: playing hero and leaving post or entering a hazard; failing to call for help before acting; giving conflicting evacuation directions; and forgetting to document the incident and the response timeline. Another trap is assuming a drill experience equals authority to direct emergency responders.
Rule of thumb: protect life, then property, then operations-in that order. If you must choose between stopping a loss and getting people out safely, people win every time.