Emergency Management and Critical Incident Response
Emergency Management and Critical Incident Response
This domain tests ICS, mobilization, active-shooter response, mass-casualty incidents, and command transition. The sergeant must bring order without delaying action.
Core actions
- Use the incident command system: command, operations, planning, logistics, and finance/administration.
- Establish a command post and unified command with Fire, EMS, and other agencies.
- For active shooter: first officers move to locate and neutralize; later officers establish perimeter, rescue task forces, and casualty collection points.
- Request resources through the chain of command; avoid self-dispatch.
- Preserve the scene and begin an incident log for after-action review.
Worked example
Shots are reported at a transit hub. The sergeant arrives after two officers have entered. The sergeant should not run in without a role. The sergeant establishes an outer perimeter, confirms radio channel and command, directs arriving units to traffic, staging, and casualty care, and requests EMS staging. When the scene is stabilized, the sergeant transitions to a command post and ensures witnesses, video, and injured persons are tracked. The reasoning: the first priority is stopping the threat, but the sergeant's priority is coordinating resources so the response does not collapse into freelancing.
Traps
- Entering without a tactical role or radio plan.
- Failing to establish unified command.
- Allowing self-deployment and blocked access lanes.
- Neglecting documentation during the response.