{"id":8853,"date":"2025-08-27T19:32:08","date_gmt":"2025-08-27T19:32:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/salarmyeds.org\/?page_id=8853"},"modified":"2025-10-01T18:41:42","modified_gmt":"2025-10-01T18:41:42","slug":"incident-command-system","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/salarmyeds.org\/index.php\/incident-command-system\/","title":{"rendered":"Incident Command System"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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Incident Command System<\/h1>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tThe\u00a0Incident Command System<\/strong>\u00a0(ICS<\/strong>) is a standardized approach to the command, control, and coordination of emergency response.\n\nICS consists of a standard hierarchy and procedures for managing temporary incident(s) of any size and includes procedures for temporary management to control funds, personnel, facilities, equipment, and communications. ICS is a system designed to be used or applied from the time an incident occurs until the requirement for management and operations no longer exists.\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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How Does ICS Work?<\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Think of ICS as a baseball game. Whether that game is played in a multimillion-dollar stadium or on a corner sandlot, certain activities must occur. Someone must pitch the ball, someone must bat, and someone has to cover the bases. In a sandlot game, with only a few players, one player may have to cover the entire outfield. For a small game, this is fine.<\/p>\n

In the major leagues, however, the scale and complexity of the event becomes much more sophisticated. There is still pitching, hitting, and fielding, but now there is one player for every position on the field. Each player has very specific responsibilities. Players must \u201cplay their position\u201d and veering off into another player\u2019s area of responsibility can leave a portion of the game field dangerously uncovered.<\/p>\n

ICS operates in a similar fashion. For a small house fire, one person may be able to cover multiple activities: taking charge of the operation, serving hot dogs from a canteen, and speaking with the local newspaper reporter who stopped by to report on the event. As a disaster gets larger or more complicated, however, the ICS structure must grow to accommodate more positions. As the complexity of the event increases, disaster workers must stay in their area of responsibility and avoid freelancing into other positions. <\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Incident\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Incident Commander<\/h3>

The Incident Commander is responsible for the overall leadership of the disaster response operation. They supervise the incident management team, set incident and service delivery objectives, monitor and approve financial expenditures, assess the physical and emotional well-being of staff, and ensure that all aspects of the disaster relief operation reflect the mission and principles of The Salvation Army.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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Public Information Officer<\/h3>

The Public Information Officer (PIO) communicates with the media and others seeking information about the disaster operation. They provide public-facing or “outward facing” communication which can include pictures, interviews, service updates, social media posts, and much more.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Liaison\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Liaison Officer<\/h3>

The Liaison Officer (LIA) serves as The Salvation Army\u2019s point-of-contact with local, state, and federal government representatives involved in the response efforts. This often occurs at an Emergency Operations Center (EOC). The Liaison Officer\u00a0also communicates with other organizations involved in the response\u00a0such as the Southern Baptist Disaster Relief or the American Red Cross.<\/p>