The Functional Areas and Positions lesson introduces you to ICS organizational components, the Command Staff, the General Staff, and ICS tools.

Lesson Objectives

At the end of this lesson, you should be able to:

• Describe the functions of organizational positions within the Incident Command System (ICS).
• Identify the ICS tools needed to manage an incident.
• Demonstrate the use of an ICS Form 201.

This lesson provides more in-depth information on ICS organizational elements.

The Incident Commander:

• Has overall incident management responsibility delegated by the appropriate jurisdictional authority
• Develops the incident objectives to guide the Incident Action Planning Process
• Approves the Incident Action Plan and all requests pertaining to the ordering and releasing of incident resources

In some situations or agencies, a lower ranking but more qualified person may be designated as the Incident Commander. Whatever their day-to-day position, when a person is designated as the Incident Commander they are delegated the authority to command the incident response.

The Incident Commander may have one or more Deputies. Deputies may be assigned at the Incident Command, Section, or Branch levels. The only ICS requirement regarding the use of a Deputy is that the Deputy must be fully qualified and equally capable to assume the position.

The three primary reasons to designate a Deputy Incident Commander are to:

• Perform specific tasks as requested by the Incident Commander.
• Perform the incident command function in a relief capacity (e.g., to take over for the next operational period). In this case, the Deputy will assume the primary role.
• Represent an Assisting Agency that may share jurisdiction or have jurisdiction in the future.

The Command Staff is only activated in response to the needs of the incident. If a Command Staff position is not needed it will not be activated. For example, an incident may not require a Liaison Officer if there are not outside agencies or organizations to coordinate with.

Command Staff includes the following positions:

• Public Information Officer
• Liaison Officer
• Safety Officer

Click this link to review a detailed description of the Command Staff functions.

In a large or complex incident, Command Staff members may need one or more Assistants to help manage their workloads. Each Command Staff member is responsible for organizing his or her Assistants for maximum efficiency. Assistants are subordinates of principal Command Staff positions.

As the title indicates, Assistants should have a level of technical capability, qualifications, and responsibility subordinate to the primary positions.

Assistants may also be assigned to Unit Leaders (e.g., at camps to supervise unit activities).

An agency or jurisdiction will often send resources to assist at an incident. In ICS these are called assisting agencies.

An assisting agency is defined as an agency or organization providing personnel, services, or other resources to the agency with direct responsibility for incident management.

A cooperating agency is an agency supplying assistance other than direct operational or support functions or resources to the incident management effort.

Don't get confused between an assisting agency and a cooperating agency! An assisting agency has direct responsibility for incident response, whereas a cooperating agency is simply offering assistance.

An incident may start small and then expand. As the incident grows in scope and the number of resources needed increases, there may be a need to activate Teams, Units, Divisions, Groups, Branches, or Sections to maintain an appropriate span of control. The optimal span of control for incident management is one supervisor to five subordinates; however, effective incident management may require ratios different from this. The 1:5 ratio is just a guideline.

The ability to delegate the supervision of resources not only frees up the Incident Commander to perform critical decision-making and evaluation duties, but also clearly defines the lines of communication to everyone involved in the incident.

Next, we'll review the major organizational elements that may be activated during an expanding incident.

The Operations Section:

• Directs and coordinates all incident tactical operations
• Is typically one of the first organizations to be assigned to the incident
• Expands from the bottom up
• Has the most incident resources
• May have Staging Areas and special organizations

The Operations Section Chief:

• Is responsible to the Incident Commander for the direct management of all incident-related operational activities
• Establishes tactical objectives for each operational period
• Has direct involvement in the preparation of the Incident Action Plan

The Operations Section Chief may have one or more Deputies assigned. The assignment of Deputies from other agencies may be advantageous in the case of multijurisdictional incidents.

Staging Areas are set up at the incident where resources can wait for a tactical assignment.

All resources in the Staging Area are assigned and ready for deployment. Out-of-service resources are NOT located at the Staging Area.

After a Staging Area has been designated and named, a Staging Area Manager will be assigned. The Staging Area Manager will report to the Operations Section Chief or to the Incident Commander if the Operations Section Chief has not been designated.

The graphic below shows where the Staging Area Manager fits into the Operations Section.

Divisions are established to divide an incident into physical or geographical areas of operation.

Groups are established to divide the incident into functional areas of operation.

For example, a Damage Assessment Task Force, reporting to the Infrastructure Group Supervisor, could work across divisions established to manage two distinct areas of the building that have been damaged — the west side of the building (West Division) and the north side (North Division).

Branches may be used to serve several purposes and may be functional or geographic in nature. Branches are established when the number of divisions or groups exceeds an effective span of control for the Operations Section Chief.

Some incidents may require the use of aviation resources to provide tactical or logistical support. On smaller incidents, aviation resources will be limited in number and will report directly to the Incident Commander or to the Operations Section Chief.

On larger incidents, it may be desirable to activate a separate Air Operations Branch to coordinate the use of aviation resources. The Air Operations Branch will then report directly to the Operations Section Chief.

The Air Operations Branch Director can establish two functional groups. The Air Tactical Group coordinates all airborne activity. The Air Support Group provides all incident ground-based support to aviation resources.

The Planning Section has responsibility for:

• Maintaining resource status
• Maintaining and displaying situation status
• Preparing the Incident Action Plan (IAP)
• Developing alternative strategies
• Providing documentation services
• Preparing the Demobilization Plan
• Providing a primary location for Technical Specialists assigned to an incident

One of the most important functions of the Planning Section is to look beyond the current and next operational period and anticipate potential problems or events.

The Planning Section will have a Planning Section Chief. The Planning Section Chief may have a Deputy.

Technical Specialists:

• Are advisors with special skills required at the incident
• Will initially report to the Planning Section, work within that Section, or be reassigned to another part of the organization
• Can be in any discipline required (e.g., epidemiology, infection control, chemical-biological-nuclear agents, etc.)

The major responsibilities of Planning Units are:

• Resources Unit: Responsible for all check-in activity and for maintaining the status on all personnel and equipment resources assigned to the incident.
• Situation Unit: Collects and processes information on the current situation, prepares situation displays and situation summaries, and develops maps and projections.
• Demobilization Unit: On large, complex incidents, assists in ensuring that an orderly, safe, and cost-effective movement of personnel is made when they are no longer required at the incident.
• Documentation Unit: Prepares the Incident Action Plan, maintains all incident-related documentation, and provides duplication services.

Early recognition of the need for a Logistics Section can reduce time and money spent on an incident. The Logistics Section is responsible for all support requirements, including:

• Communications
• Medical support to incident personnel
• Food for incident personnel
• Supplies, facilities, and ground support

It is important to remember that Logistics Section functions, except for the Supply Unit, are geared to supporting personnel and resources directly assigned to the incident. For example, the Medical Unit provides medical support to the incident response personnel. Medical resources that support the population affected by the incident would be managed under the Operations Section.

The Service Branch may be made up of the following units:

• The Communications Unit is responsible for developing plans for the effective use of incident communications equipment and facilities, installing and testing of communications equipment, supervision of the Incident Communications Center, distribution of communications equipment to incident personnel, and maintenance and repair of communications equipment.
• The Medical Unit is responsible for the development of the Medical Plan, obtaining medical aid and transportation for injured and ill incident personnel, and preparation of reports and records.
• The Food Unit is responsible for supplying the food needs for responder personnel for the entire incident, including all remote locations (e.g., Camps, Staging Areas), as well as providing food for personnel unable to leave tactical field assignments.

The Support Branch within the Logistics Section may include the following units:

• The Supply Unit is responsible for ordering personnel, equipment, and supplies; receiving and storing all supplies for the incident; maintaining an inventory of supplies; and servicing nonexpendable supplies and equipment.
• The Facilities Unit is responsible for setting up, maintaining, and demobilizing all facilities used in support of incident operations. Facilities Unit staff set up the Incident Command Post (ICP), Incident Base, and camps (including trailers or other forms of shelter in and around the incident area), ensure the maintenance of those facilities, and provide law enforcement/security services needed for incident support.
• The Ground Support Unit is responsible for supporting out-of-service resources; transporting personnel, supplies, food, and equipment; fueling, service, maintenance, and repair of vehicles and other ground support equipment; and implementing the Traffic Plan for the incident.

The Finance/Administration Section:

• Is established when incident management activities require finance and other administrative support services.
• Handles claims related to property damage, injuries, or fatalities at the incident.

Remember that the ICS organizational structure is flexible and scalable to adapt to any situation. Not all incidents will require a separate Finance/Administration Section. If the full Finance/Administration Section is not needed, it would not be activated. When only one specific function is needed (e.g., cost analysis), a Technical Specialist assigned to the Planning Section could provide these services.

Finance/Administration Units include the following:

• The Time Unit is responsible for equipment and personnel time recording.
• The Procurement Unit is responsible for administering all financial matters pertaining to vendor contracts, leases, and fiscal agreements.
• The Compensation/Claims Unit is responsible for financial concerns resulting from property damage, injuries, or fatalities at the incident.
• The Cost Unit is responsible for tracking costs, analyzing cost data, making cost estimates, and recommending cost-saving measures.

Intelligence/Investigations (I/I) is an ICS function identified in NIMS.

When I/I is required for specialized types of responses, the IC/UC can place the I/I function in multiple locations within the incident command structure based on factors such as the nature of the incident, the level of I/I activity, and the relationship of I/I to other incident activities.

The I/I can be placed in the Planning Section, in the Operations Section, within the Command Staff, as a separate General Staff section, or in some combination of these locations.

Some important tools you should have available at the incident include:

• Emergency Operations Plan (EOP) from the affected jurisdiction(s)
• Agency policies and procedures manuals for responding agencies
• Maps of the affected area

ICS Forms provide a method of recording and communicating key incident-specific information in a format that is simple, consistent, and supports interoperability. When using each ICS Form, you should ensure that you understand the following about each form:

• Purpose — What function does the form perform?
• Preparation — Who is responsible for preparing the form?
• Distribution — Who needs to receive this information?

The Incident Briefing Form (ICS Form 201) is an eight-part form that provides an Incident Command/Unified Command with status information that can be used for briefing incoming resources, an incoming Incident Commander or team, or an immediate supervisor. The basic information includes:

• Incident situation (map, significant events)
• Incident objectives
• Summary of current actions
• Status of resources assigned or ordered for the incident or event

Occasionally, the ICS Form 201 serves as the initial Incident Action Plan (IAP) until a Planning Section has been established and generates, at the direction of the Incident Commander, an IAP.

The ICS Form 201 is also suitable for briefing individuals newly assigned to the Command and General Staffs.

Commonly used Incident Command System forms can be found on FEMA's Emergency Management Institute website for ICS Forms:

• ICS Form 202, Incident Objectives
• ICS Form 203, Organization Assignment List
• ICS Form 204, Assignment List
• ICS Form 205, Incident Radio Communications Plan
• ICS Form 206, Medical Plan
• ICS Form 207, Organizational Chart
• ICS Form 208, Safety Message
• ICS Form 209, Incident Status Summary
• ICS Form 210, Status Change Card
• ICS Form 211, Check-In List
• ICS Form 213, General Message
• ICS Form 214, Unit Log
• ICS Form 215, Operational Planning Worksheet
• ICS Form 215a, Incident Action Plan Safety Analysis
• ICS Form 216, Radio Requirements Worksheet
• ICS Form 217, Radio Frequency Assignment Worksheet
• ICS Form 218, Support Vehicle Inventory
• ICS Form 220, Air Operations Summary
• ICS Form 221, Demobilization Plan
• ICS Form 308, Resource Order Form

You have completed the Functional Areas and Positions lesson. You should now be able to:

• Describe the functions of organizational positions within the Incident Command System (ICS).
• Identify the ICS tools needed to manage an incident.
• Demonstrate the use of an ICS Form 201.

The next lesson will discuss briefings.