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The National Response System and the Incident Command System/Unified Command

I. X. II. VIII. V. III. VII. IX. IV. VI. Alaska. Oceania. Caribbean. The National Response System and the Incident Command System/Unified Command. Federal On-Scene Coordinator. Responsible for providing access to federal resources and technical assistance

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The National Response System and the Incident Command System/Unified Command

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  1. I X II VIII V III VII IX IV VI Alaska Oceania Caribbean The National Response System and the Incident Command System/Unified Command

  2. Federal On-Scene Coordinator • Responsible for providing access to federal resources and technical assistance • Coordinates all federal containment, removal, and disposal efforts and resources during an oil or hazmat incident • Serves as thepoint of contact for coordination of federal efforts with the local response community • Coordinates, monitors, or directs response actions • Agency providing OSC might differ depending on the incident (EPA, USCG, DOD, DOE, or other federal agency)

  3. National Response System Concept of Response

  4. OSC Response Assets • Enforcement authorities to ensure that the responsible party (RP) cleans up the spill or release • Immediate access to technical assistance and cleanup contractors if the response is beyond the RP’s capabilities • Immediate access to Superfund and the OSLTF • Reimbursement of extraordinary oil or hazmat response costs incurred by state or local responders • Regional Response Teams (during major incidents) • Technical expertise from special federal teams • Special equipment

  5. NRT

  6. Overview • Purpose of the ICS/UC Technical Assistance Document • Background and authorities for NCP and ICS/UC • ICS/UC • Relationship between UC and ICS • Relationship between the RRT and UC • ICS/UC: A response management tool • Responsibilities under ICS/UC • Advantages of ICS/UC • Participants in the UC under the NCP

  7. Overview (cont’d) • OSC and RRT Planning Roles and Responsibilities • Reimbursement programs • Potential liability • UC implementation • Essential planning elements and ACPs • Initial UC meeting activities • ICS/UC at work: Professional Food Systems case study • Moving Forward • Sources of ICS information

  8. Purpose of ICS/UC Technical Assistance Document • Increase awareness of ICS/UC • Improve coordination among responders during responses and exercises • Encourage interagency training programs • Encourage development of a common language and response culture • Help achieve consistent, effective, and efficient response among members of the NRS

  9. Background and Authorities for NCP and ICS/UC • NCP developed to provide federal agency expertise to responses of oil spills and hazardous substance releases • Establishes the mechanism for the NRS • OPA enacted after Exxon Valdez to strengthen the NRS and provide better contingency planning coordination • NIIMS-based ICS first designed to respond to forest fires • Under the NCP, the NRS functions as an ICS

  10. Background and Authorities for NCP and ICS/UC cont. • 1989 EXXON VALDEZ Report to the President • 1994 Revisions to the NCP • 1996 and 2002 NRT Technical Assistance Documents

  11. Background and Authorities for NCP and ICS/UC cont. • The NRT recommended that NIIMS-based ICS/UC be used for on-site response management during terrorist incidents • A recommendation from the NRT to the Department of Justice after TOPOFF 2000, the largest domestic terrorism exercise in the US to date • ICS/UC is an important element of the Homeland Security Presidential Directive #5 that addresses terrorist incidents

  12. INCIDENT COMMANDER SAFETY INFORMATION LIAISON FINANCE/ ADMINISTRATION OPERATIONS PLANNING LOGISTICS Incident Command System • Provides organizational structure for response to any single incident or multiple incidents without being hindered by jurisdictional boundaries • Integrates communication and planning by establishing a manageable span of control • Divides emergency response into five functions: Command, Operations, Planning, Logistics, and Finance/Administration

  13. Unified Command • Component of an ICS • Responsible for overall management of incident • Directs incident activities and approves ordering and releasing of resources • Used whenever multiplejurisdictions are involved in a response effort RP OSC OSC UNIFIED COMMAND STATEa RP LOCAL STATE aThis usually includes local authorities as well.

  14. When should a UC be used? • The UC may be used whenever multiple jurisdictions are involved in a response effort. These jurisdictions could be represented by: • Geographic boundaries • Governmental levels • Functional responsibilities • Statutory responsibilities • Some combination of the above.

  15. Participants in the Unified Command under the NCP • Under the NCP, the UC may consist of the pre-designated Federal OSC, State OSC, Incident Commander for the RP, the local emergency response Incident Commander, and/or other parties as appropriate • Local fire and police are frequently first responders to arrive on-scene • May establish an initial ICS • Relationships can vary depending on state laws and/or practices • Makeup of the UC is determined by: • Specifics of the incident • Determinations outlined in existing response plans • Decisions reached during the initial meeting of the UC • Makeup of UC may change over time.

  16. Participants in the Unified Command (cont’d) • Number of personnel should be kept at a minimum • Decision to include RP in the UC depends on its relationship with members of the ICS

  17. Who is in the Unified Command? Member organizations in the UC: • Must have jurisdictional authority or functional responsibility under a law or ordinance for the incident • Must have an area of responsibility that is affected by the incident or response operations • Must be specifically charged with commanding, coordinating, or managing a major aspect of the response • Must have the resources to support participation in the response organization

  18. What if you are not a member of the UC? • Being in the UC does not mean that you are the only member of your agency on the response • There must be support staff on lower levels • Being a member in the UC is not the only place one can make a difference • Much of the “real work” occurs within the sections of the ICS organization • That is where you should be involved!

  19. Duties of UC Representatives • Establish response objectives and priorities • Sustain a 24-hour-a-day, 7-day-a-week commitment to the incident • Ability to commit resources • Authority to spend funds • Agree on an incident response organization • Agree on the appropriate Command and General Staff position assignments • Commit to speak with one voice through the Information Officer or JIC • Agree on logistical support procedures • Agree on cost-sharing procedures

  20. Operations Planning Logistics Finance and Administration Unified Command Participants May Include: Local Official(s) State Official(s) Federal Official(s) Responsible Party Representative(s) Information Safety Liaison Relationship between ICS and UC

  21. Relationship Between the RRT and UC National Response System Concept of Response

  22. ICS/UC: A Response Management Tool • Assists the OSC in directing, monitoring, and coordinating response efforts • Responding organizations retain their authorities and responsibilities • Facilitates and coordinates the effective involvement of the various agencies • Creates link between the organizations responding to the incident

  23. ICS/UC: A Response Management Tool(cont’d) • Provides an avenue for response organizations to establish input in the decision-making process • Allows for information sharing both horizontally and vertically throughout the response organization • All parties must be integrated throughout the response

  24. Responsibilities of Command/General Staff under ICS/UC • Provide response direction • Coordinate effective communication and resources • Establish incident priorities • Develop mutually agreed-upon incident objectives and approve response strategies • Assign objectives to response structure • Review and approve incident action plans

  25. Responsibilities of Command/General Staff under ICS/UC (cont’d) • Ensure integration of response organizations • Establish protocols • Ensure worker and public health and safety • Inform the media

  26. Advantages of ICS/UC • Uses a common language and response culture • Optimizes combined efforts • Eliminates duplicative efforts • Establishes a single command post • Allows for collective approval of operations, logistics, planning, and finance activities • Encourages a cooperative response environment • Allows for shared facilities, reduced response costs, increased efficiency and fewer communication breakdowns • Permits responders to develop and implement one consolidated Incident Action Plan

  27. How do responders prepare for ICS/UC implementation? • Planning and exercising at the regional and area levels using the ACP process. • Practice using an ICS/UC to help responders understand their roles and responsibilities and prepare them to work together in the ICS. • The OSC and the Area Committee are responsible for developing, adopting, and implementing a response management system, such as ICS/UC, through the Area Contingency Plan (ACP). • Using a NIIMS-based ICS/UC as the model for response management in the ACP to ensure an effective response

  28. Formalized structure accepted by all parties Well-defined functions and responsibilities Designated individuals for each function Defined and accepted reporting mechanisms Established methodology for developing IAP and Site Safety Plan Participant commitment to respond as a team Training and familiarity with ICS/UC addressed in plans Defined relationships to entities outside ICS but relevant to the NRS Essential Planning Elementsfor Implementing ICS/UC

  29. Area Contingency Plans and ICS/UC • Area Contingency Plans should consider: • Jurisdictional responsibilities • Roles of all levels of government in the Unified Command (i.e., federal, state, and local) • Financial agreements • Information dissemination • Communications • Training and exercising • Logistics • NRS organizational components • Lessons learned

  30. OSC’s Planning Roles and Responsibilities • Oversee development of the area contingency plan (ACP) • Coordinate, direct, and review work of other agencies, Area committees, RP’s and contractors • Coordinate with state and local response agencies • Periodically conduct drills of spill removal capability • Monitor the actions of the RP and state and local governments

  31. RRT Planning Roles and Responsibilities • Develop and coordinate preparedness activities before a response is taken • Coordinate assistance and advice to OSC during response actions • Provide guidance to Area Committees to ensure inter-area consistency and consistency of individual ACPs with the Regional Contingency Plan and the NCP

  32. OSC’s Response Roles and Duties • Direct, monitor and coordinate response actions • Monitor the actions of the RP and/or local and state governments and provide support and advice where appropriate • Explain the OSC’s authority at a response during both the planning and response phases • Implement an ICS at the beginning of a response, OR be prepared to integrate into an existing, properly functioning, ICS during a response • May establish any of the functions of an ICS by assigning responsibility to another individual • Provide access to appropriate response trust funds

  33. The Role of the Regional Response Teams National Response System Concept of Response

  34. Implementation During an Incident: Initial Unified Command Meeting • Initial meetingis an opportunity for open discussion to: • Set priorities and objectives • Present considerations • Develop a collective set of incident objectives and priorities • Adopt an overall strategy • Select a Unified Command spokesperson • Establish a JIC, as needed • Decide on initial membership of UC

  35. Initial Unified Command Meeting Step 1: Set Priorities and Objectives • National Response Priorities specifically for oil response established by the NCP for the NRS: • Preserve safety of human life • Stabilize the situation to prevent the event from worsening • Minimize adverse effects to the environment • Address these three priorities concurrently • Each responding entity will likely have other significant priorities

  36. Initial Unified Command Meeting Step 2: Present Considerations • UC members discuss their organization’s authorities, equipment, skills, experience, and response capabilities • Constraints and capabilities must be shared openly

  37. Initial Unified Command Meeting Step 3: Develop a Collective Set of Incident Objectives • Identify what the Unified Command as a whole needs to accomplish • Develop a set of incident-specific objectives for the response • Objectives should be measurable, assignable, reasonable, and time-related • Helps to provide focus to the growing response organization • Includes establishing and agreeing upon acceptable priorities

  38. Initial Unified Command Meeting Step 4: Adopt an Overall Strategy • Determine how to accomplish the objectives • Request preferred strategies for later approval as necessary

  39. Initial Unified Command Meeting Step 5: Select a Unified Command Spokesperson • Establish a JIC • A single spokesperson is typically needed to speak for the Unified Command • One of the members of the Unified Command • Point of contact and a single voice to the incident management team • Spokesperson at internal and external briefings • Final procedural check

  40. ICS/UC at Work:Professional Food Systems Case Study • Leak in accumulator assembly valve released anhydrous ammonia into the PFS building and the outside environment • Approximately 4,000-5,000 pounds of anhydrous ammonia contained in the system was leaking at 4-5 pounds per hour • Leak was slowed by initial responders, but not completely contained • Ammonia gas accumulated in the building, presenting difficulties for the responders

  41. ICS/UC at Work: Professional Food Systems Case Study (cont’d) • Bedford Volunteer Fire Company and the Roanoke Valley Regional HAZMAT Response Team were first to respond • Established an ICS • Began response actions • FOSC initiated response from off-site by deploying ERT • FOSC merged into the existing ICS structure

  42. Responding Organizations • US EPA Region III Removal Response Section • VA DES • Bedford Volunteer Fire Company/Rescue Squad • Forrest Volunteer Fire Company/Rescue Squad • USCG Atlantic Strike Team • Roanoke Valley Regional Hazardous Materials Response Team • Bedford Police Department • Professional Food Systems • US EPA ERT • USDA • Roy F. Weston Inc. SATA • City of Bedford, VA • Webb Technologies

  43. Responding Organizations (cont’d) • Franklin County Fire Department • Evington Fire Department • Smith Mt. Lake Fire Department • Lyn/Dan Heights Fire Department • Stuartsville/Chamblissberg Fire Department • Huddleston Fire Department/Rescue Squad • Chamblissberg Fire Department • Moneta Fire Department/Rescue Squad • Boonesboro Fire Department/Rescue Squad • Montvale Fire Department • Saunders Fire Department • Good Rescue Squad • Campbell Rescue Squad

  44. Effective ICS/UC Actions to the Professional Food Systems Response • OSC immediately able to identify and integrate roles and positions for USCG-AST and contractor resources • Coordination between and presence of FOSC and state OSC allowed for seamless operations • ICS/UC informally applied to allow UC to effectively manage diverse responding agencies

  45. Effective ICS/UC Actions to the Professional Food Systems Response(cont’d) • Early and continued presence of the USCG-AST, the EPA ERT, and the SATA team provided continuity throughout the response • Early coordination with local, state, and federal response teams • Representatives from all appropriate levels of government in the UC expedited coordination efforts with other agencies • Close and early coordination with the ERT and SATA team

  46. Moving Forward • There are four keys to effective implementation of the ICS/UC as a tool of the NRS: • Learn the NRS and the ICS • Plan – ACP process • Start Early • Practice - Federal, state, and local officials should plan and conduct exercises • Develop a sense of team work and trust

  47. Sources of ICS Information • NRT’s Minimum Essential ICS Training Elements • NRT’s Federal Natural Resource Trustees and the ICS/UC • Annex 3 of the NRT ICP Guidance • USCG’s Incident Management Handbook • USCG HQ ICS web site • RRTs I and II ICS in Oil Spill Response web site • NSFCC ICS web site • FEMA’s and the U.S. Fire Administration’s Computer-assisted Instruction for ICS: Self-study Course • USCG’s OSC2 – On-scene Command and Control Prototype • Setting Objectives in a Unified Command: The “Cost” of Leadership,1999 IOSC Proceedings • Incident Command System, Fire Protection Publications, Oklahoma State University • NWCG ICS National Training Curriculum modules • NOAA Electronic ICS Forms – ICSFORMS Solution • Unified Command: The Mechanism for Ensuring a Comprehensive, Coordinated Response, 1995 IOSC Proceedings

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