Two Part Discussion Topic – ICS, Emergency Management Plans, and Programs
Two-part discussion, 300 words EACH, 2 sources, APA style (no cover sheet needed)
DO NOT define things, this is a discussion topic and should encourage future conversation. This should be your own thoughts supported by the sources. The discussion topic should answer the questions below and encourage conversation. The following are the topics and questions:
Discussion Part 1 –
ICS, Emergency Management Plans, and Programs
What do you feel is the most underrated position in the Command Staff? In the General Staff?
Discussion Part 2 –
ICS, Emergency Management Plans, and Programs
What is the difference between the emergency management plan and the emergency management program?
Use the attached file for support.
Two-part discussion, 300 words each, 2 sources, APA style (no cover sheet needed)
DO NOT define things, this is a discussion topic and should encourage future conversation. This should be your own thoughts supported by the sources. The discussion topic should answer the questions below and encourage conversation. The following are the topics and questions:
Discussion Part 1 –
ICS, Emergency Management Plans, and Programs
What do you feel is the most underrated position in the Command Staff? In the General Staff?
Discussion Part 2 –
ICS, Emergency Management Plans, and Programs
What is the difference between the emergency management plan and the emergency management program?
Lecture 7 – Incident Command System
The Incident Command System (commonly referred to as “ICS”) is an organizational tool for responding to disaster/emergencies and/or for managing events.
CREDIT: http://www.training.fema.gov/EMIWeb/IS/ISCResources/assetts/reviewMaterials.pdf
The development of ICS began in the west in the 1970s as a response to wildfires that crossed community, county, state and even national borders. With such a vast area and the involvement of so many organizations with varied experiences, backgrounds and ways of doing things, it became obvious that common terminology, procedures and processes had to be developed. It was essential to develop a standardized system to provide effective coordination among the varied organizations. ICS was that system. Using the experience gained and adapting successful best practices, ICS has developed into the system that has spread throughout the nation, used by most fire departments, police, NASA, and the U. S. Coast Guard, etc. It has recently been mandated for use by all federal agencies, and most states and many businesses and industries have begun using it. One of the key features of ICS (in addition to common terminology, resource typing, standardized forms and procedures) is its scalability. It can be used by a Highway Patrol Officer arriving at a multi-vehicle accident by herself or by the organizing agencies for a complex event like the Salt Lake City Olympics spreading over vast areas and involving thousands of personnel and hundreds of organizations.
Emergency Management Cycle
Incident Commander Develops incident objectives and approves resource orders and demobilization. Operations Section Identifies, assigns, and supervise the resources needed to accomplish the incident objectives.
Planning Section Tracks resources and identifies resource shortages.
Logistics Section Orders resources.
Finance/Admin Section Procures and pays for the resources. Reports costs.
FEMA has developed a five-unit, 168-page course for ICS. But for our purposes, completion of Unit 1, “Introduction to ICS” will provide us with
Please read the “Introduction to ICS” Unit
It’s advisable to take the complete five-unit course online at a later date. That will provide much more in-depth information along with the opportunity to receive a certificate of completion from the Emergency Management Institute. (It will also result in your name being entered into the national data bank of people who have completed basic ICS instruction.) But again, for our purposes, complete only the Unit 1 “Introduction to ICS” in your package.
This will provide a good basic knowledge that we will be building on and referring to during the remainder of the course.
The Planning Process within ICS
Well, there you have it from the Commander-in-Chief. The Incident Command System revolves around the Incident Action Plan (IAP).
It was recognized early in the development of the ICS that the critical factor of adequate planning for incident operations was often overlooked or not given enough emphasis. This resulted in poor use of resources, inappropriate strategies and tactics, safety problems, higher incident costs, and lower effectiveness.
Those involved in the original ICS development felt that there was a need to develop a simple but thorough process for planning that could be utilized for both smaller, short-term incidents and events, and for longer, more complex incident planning. The planning process may begin with the scheduling of a planned event, the identification of a credible threat, or the initial response to an actual or impending event. The process continues with the implementation of the formalized steps and staffing required to develop a written Incident Action Plan (IAP).
The primary phases of the planning process are essentially the same for the Incident Commander who develops the initial plan, for the Incident Commander and Operations Section Chief revising the initial plan for extended operations, and for the incident management team developing a formal IAP, each following a similar process. During the initial stages of incident management, planners must develop a simple plan that can be communicated through concise oral briefings. Frequently, this plan must be developed very quickly and with incomplete situation information. As the incident management effort evolves over time, additional lead time, staff, information systems, and technologies enable more detailed planning and cataloging of events and “lessons learned.”
Planning involves:
• Evaluating the situation.
• Developing incident objectives.
• Selecting a strategy.
• Deciding which resources should be used to achieve the objectives in the safest, most efficient and cost-effective manner.
The Planning “P”
The Planning “P” shows the planning process for one operational period.
The Plannin “P”
While it might be oral or a formal written document, the IAP is a critical part of the overall management of the incident, and it both ensures that personnel understand the objectives for their shift and allows for a unity of effort through action planning. At the state level, the incident action plan should address the operational objectives/challenges faced by the local/county emergency operations centers. This process is very similar to the IAP development used in field operations; however, at a higher operational level, the IAP for the state EOC is much broader in scope. The Planning P process developed by the U.S. Coast Guard, and used in NIMS/ICS, is the basis for key meetings.
To ensure that the Planning P meets the needs for the emergency operations center, the Planning P for EOCs has been modified and adopted by many local and state emergency management organizations.
Lecture 8 – The Emergency Management Plan and the Program
Simply put the Plan is a part of the Program. While all hazard specific plans have an emergency management cycle, a Comprehensive Emergency Management Program has the same emergency cycle we talked about in the first module of this course.
Emergency Management Plan
An emergency management plan outlines concepts of operations for coordinated efforts by local officials, emergency responders, other government departments, volunteer groups, and other individuals or agencies to perform emergency functions. It has been repeatedly demonstrated that preplanning emergency operations saves time in getting operations underway, facilitates integrated effort, and helps ensure that essential activities are carried out efficiently. When an emergency plan exists and local officials and emergency responders are familiar with it, they have a common guide for action.
A properly prepared emergency management plan provides a concise statement of the emergency responsibilities of local officials, departments, and agencies, as well as descriptions of the emergency functions that volunteer groups, industry, schools, hospitals, and other entities have agreed to perform so that those individuals who must respond to an emergency have a clear understanding of what they are supposed to do and what others will be doing.
An emergency management plan is a document that:
• Describes the legal basis for emergency management activities.
• Outlines lines of authority and organizational relationships during emergency situations, and describes how actions will be coordinated.
• Includes a concept of operations for responding to and recovering from emergency situations.
• Assigns responsibility to organizations and individuals for carrying out specific emergency actions to protect lives and property.
• Identifies personnel, equipment, facilities, supplies, and other resources available within the jurisdiction or by agreement with other jurisdictions for use during response and recovery operations.
• Outlines procedures to request assistance from the state if local resources are insufficient to deal with an emergency situation.
• Identifies mitigation actions to reduce the threat posed by a known hazard.
Emergency Management Program (EMP)
A comprehensive EMP enhances a jurisdiction’s ability to manage such emergency events by identifying its vulnerabilities to hazards and coordinating mitigation and preparedness activities to address those vulnerabilities. This will enhance the jurisdiction’s capability and capacity to conduct emergency response and recovery operations. The program should be comprehensive, permanent, sustainable, and based on the jurisdiction’s existing systems and processes.
Emergency Management Programs have four essential components:
• Hazard Vulnerability Analysis (HVA): Identifies and prioritizes the hazards and vulnerabilities that confront a jurisdiction.
• Incident Management System (IMS): Formalizes the management structure for emergency operations within the jurisdiction.
• Emergency Operations Plan (EOP): Guides emergency response and recovery activities.
• Exercise Program: Creates a cycle of organizational learning and improvement for all elements of the EMP.
The Emergency Management Program supports the Emergency Management Cycle as seen in the chart below:
Emergency Management Cycle
