Incident Command, Communications, and Emergency Management
Incident command and emergency management
ICS and NIMS questions test structure and terminology. Know the five major management functions: Command, Operations, Planning, Logistics, and Finance/Administration. Command staff includes the Safety Officer, Public Information Officer, and Liaison Officer; general staff are the section chiefs. Unity of command means one supervisor per person; span of control is commonly 3-7, with 5 optimal. Transfer of command requires a briefing and should be announced.
Know the planning cycle: operational periods, the Incident Action Plan, objectives, and the planning process. Communications questions often test plain language, interoperability, and the difference between tactical channels and command channels.
Emergency management uses the cycle: mitigation, preparedness, response, recovery. The Emergency Operations Center coordinates policy and resource support; it does not command the incident, the Incident Commander does. The National Response Framework uses Emergency Support Functions; the Stafford Act governs federal disaster assistance.
Worked example: A working fire expands beyond one company. The first-arriving officer establishes command, gives a brief size-up, requests resources, and assigns divisions (geographic) and groups (functional). When a battalion chief arrives, command transfers after a face-to-face briefing.
Rule of thumb: Command is on-scene; the EOC supports. If a question asks who directs tactical operations, the answer is the IC, not the EOC.