Incident Action Plan Essay

The Queensland Police Service (QPS) Incident Command System (ICS) was raised as a project in 2001 with the aim of establishing a Command system which could be used for any type of incident or event. Extensive research was conducted into ICS models throughout Australia and overseas. The QPS ICS was finally adapted from the North American ICS model which allows a flexible approach to incident response with effectiveness and efficiency. The QPS ICS was then adopted into Section 1.12 of the QPS Operational Procedures Manual (OPM 2014). The QPS ICS takes a formal approach by gathering intelligence, planning a response and deploying the available resources to achieve a specific result (QPS2013a).

Recommendations were made following the shooting to implement a command center with personnel able to take command at the beginning of a crisis, control assembled personnel, and to communicate objectives clearly (Erickson, 2001). This came after the failure of law enforcement to set up a successful command center whereas Fire and EMS successfully instituted an incident command center based on

1. Field or Incident Commander (FC) is the highest ranking official at the scene who would be situated in the Command Post. Here the FC greets the media and provides briefing and updates to them. Next in command are the Tactical Supervisor and Negotiation Supervisor. Command over the perimeter security units and the tactical response team is the responsibility of the Tactical Supervisor. They also maintain communication with the negotiating team and plan the tactical operation. The Negotiation Supervisor is responsible for the functioning of the negotiating team and provide liason with the Tactical Supervisor. They must also act as a buffer between the negotiators and any "outsider." Next, there is the Primary Negotiator (PN) who contacts

Directly receiving directions from the Incident Commander as well as reporting to the Command Staff are sections that oversee, plan, and assemble the necessary resources to carry out the Incident Action Plan passed down from the Command Staff. The Operations Section is managed by the Operations Section Chief who oversees all tactical operations at the incident. Deputies can then be appointed underneath the Operations Section Chief to control different Branches of operations in order to keep the span of control in scale. Ideally one individual should only control five other individuals on scene. As resources grow, the span of control can be reduced through the implementation of Divisions and Groups. Divisions can be used if the need arises to slit operations into geographical locations. This allows for the Operations Section Chief to pass on vital information to crews in a specific location. These divisions may simply be a quadrant of a structure, as well as a large area. It enables for all Divisions to communicate and work together, even through the use of different methods. Groups can then be implemented to further break down Divisions into smaller more manageable resources. In each geographical location, the ability to control law

The National Incident Management System is a systematic guideline on how to effectively plan, mitigate, respond and recover, from significant incidences especially those that encompass diverse interest and involves all levels of governments. It works hand in hand with the National Response Framework, which provides structure for incident management while NIMS provide the guide for all departments and agencies at all levels of government, nongovernmental organizations, and the private sector to work flawlessly during incident management to reduce loss of life and property (U. S. Department of Homeland Security, 2008). The core aspect of the National Incident Management System during incident response is the Incident Command System (ICS),

One of the main goals of the incident command system (ICS) is to manage resources on the fire grounds. The Incident Command System has a built-in accountability system. Proper management of fire ground operations is necessary to achieve and maintain accountability. Accountability through incident command is possible only if it is established from the very beginning of the incident with the arrival of the first unit, officer, or member who establishes command and begins to assign and track incoming resources. Resources that self-deploy on the fire ground without the establishment and direction of an overall IC are not operating within incident command, a single incident action plan (IAP), or an accountability system. Any organization that waits for a later arriving officer to show up, establish command, and then attempt to locate and track multiple self-deployed resources from scratch is setting that officer and the organization up for failure and, ultimately, a tragic disaster. Accountability through

The chain of command is an orderly line of authority within the ranks of the incident management system. Unity of command means that every individual has a designated supervisor to whom they report to at the scene of an incident, and only one person they take orders from. Unity of command enables all responsible agencies to manage an incident together by establishing a set of incident objectives and strategies, and allows incident commanders to make joint decisions by establishing a single command structure, with the emphasis of maintaining unity of command and accountability for every responder at the

All leaders in the group will concentrate on the mental and physical wellness of Soldiers and subordinate officers. Contingent upon the recent training and the information acquired from the previous deployment, commanders and NCOs continue to arrange and plan for reintegration of Soldiers and families, recuperation of gear and new hardware preparing, and the accession of new Soldiers. All collective training requirements above section or team level for units will stop. Subordinate officers and NCOs develop, arrange, perform, and evaluate training in fundamental skills at the individual, crew and section level. Management of the unit will decentralize, giving junior officers the scope to oversee training within the brigade commander's objective. Leaders direct Soldiers to professional military education and functional training to cover the capacity gaps experienced in the previous deployment. Officers create and execute their tactics to prepare, teach, and give the right encounters to subordinate officers, which for the most part is individual training and education, team building, and developing the 4th ABCT to conduct collective training in the next phase. Officers and NCOs evaluate the development, formulation, and implementation of the individual and small-team training done by juniors and give

Incident Command System is a standardized on-scene incident management concept designed specifically to allow responders to provide a span of control through an integrated organizational structure equal to the complexity and demands of any single incident or multiple incidents without being

This information will be used to establish priorities and develop an incident action plan. Resources and capabilities are employed based on the size, scope, nature and complexity of the incident. Should the disaster exceed the local governments, they would request assistance through mutual aid and assistance agreements, the State, or the Federal Government. Mutual aid agreements establish the roles and responsibilities of both parties, the procedures for requesting assistance and communication protocols.

The book, “National Incident Management System: Principles and Practice,” by Dr. Donald W. Walsh, Dr. Hank T. Christen, Christian E. Callsen, Geoffrey T. Miller, Paul M. Maniscalco, Graydon C. Lord, and Neal J. Dolan, describes ICS as, “…a system for domestic incident management that is based on an expandable, flexible structure…” (Walsh, et al., 2012, p. 12). Due to this flexibility, Walsh et al. state that ICS is commonly used by all levels of government as well as by a number of non-governmental agencies and the private sector. ICS is structured around five sections. These sections are command, operations, planning, logistics, and finance/administration (Walsh, et al., 2012,

Making an emergency action plan is really important to reduce the risk for and prevent injuries. When developing an emergency plan, one need to know and identify the types of emergencies when they occur, write safety guidelines and instructions that need to be followed in the event of an emergency. The steps to follow include signals to use in order to activate the safety plan when there is an emergency, the procedures for responding to the emergency, for calling 911 and giving direction to the EMS responder to the scene, and any follow-up actions that need to be taken. Identify safety equipment that is available and needed to respond to each type of emergency. After developing the emergency plan, one need to practice it in order to be familiar

2. Situational Assessment. Once the Incident Commander arrives on the scene, s/he will need to assess the emergency quickly. Is there still a threat to the general population? Are the casualties identified or does Search & Rescue need to be mobilized? The IC needs to come up with a game plan to save lives, protect property and the environment, meet basic human needs, and stabilize the situation. 5

Establishing the incident command system is first and foremost. The system establishes a common organizational structure that is conducive for different types of agencies as well as multiple jurisdictions to be able to effectively work together in response to the situation. The components of this system include the Incident Commander, who oversees all aspects of the disaster response, operations, planning, logistics and finance/administrative (Briggs & Twomey, 2003).

The effective contingency plan should only include the high-priority items and it should be as simple as possible. The purpose for the contingency plans is to response quickly when there are changes of an organization’s current strategy. For example, the predefined strategy is based on some assumptions about the economy but the outcome is not what the organization assumed, the contingency plan can support the organization to react promptly. The effective contingency planning includes a seven step process. First, Identify both beneficial and unfavorable events that could possibly derail the strategy. This step includes the development of the formal contingency planning policy statement in order to provide it to relevant stakeholders the authority and guideline that required developing the effective contingency plan. Policy will be published when executive confirms it. To gather the high-level business requirements, define scope and allocating project resources. Second, Specify trigger points and calculate about when contingent events are likely to occur. It involves the Business Impact Analysis (BIA) to identify threat scenarios, prioritize key business processes and critical systems for business continuity. Executive approval on those choices of the critical business functions and the priority to recover during the disaster. Third, Assess the