By David Mager
Deputy Fire Chief

As a starting point for this discussion of the Incident Command System (ICS), I would like to offer one of the many definitions of ICS, this one from the text Fire Officer's Guide To Disaster Control. An Incident Command System is "the combination of facilities, equipment, personnel, procedures, and communications operating within a common organizational structure with responsibility for the management of assigned resources to effectively accomplish stated objectives pertaining to the incident." This may sound daunting and complicated, but there's one key word that is the essence of Incident Command. That key word is organization. ICS is a way to organize the resources that are summoned to any incident. Whether the incident is large or small or whether it involves one jurisdiction or many, ICS can assist the incident commander in managing the personnel and equipment being used in the operation. It establishes an identifiable line of accountability throughout the organization. It is modular in format, which makes it simple as well as flexible. When used properly there is only one person in charge. That person is the Incident Commander. Furthermore every member of the organization answers to just one supervisor. This is called unity of command. Each supervisor's span of control is restricted to a limited number of subordinates, usually 3 to 5. Most importantly, ICS does not specify the tactics or strategy that you use. That's up to you.

First, A Little History
Incident Command was first established in the early seventies in California as a response to the massive wildfires and natural disasters that occurred along the West Coast. In the almost 30 years since ICS was first used, there has been three major forms that ICS has taken. First there was FIRESCOPE. This was mainly used in the west and usually for wildfires. Then Fire Ground Command (FGC) was created by the Phoenix Fire Department to apply the principles of the FIRESCOPE system to building fires and the normal day-to-day incidents of the average fire department. It was especially applicable to structural fires. In the eighties, the National Fire Academy developed a form of ICS that attempted to combine the best of both previous systems. Naturally, there were some technical differences and changes in terminology. But, as the saying goes "A rose is a rose is a rose." And ICS is ICS. There have been other attempts to standardize ICS. The National Wildfire Coordinating Group (NWCG) has developed a national training curriculum for ICS, which carries a nationally recognized certification. Most recently, the National Fire Service Incident Management Systems Consortium has designed a model procedures guide to ICS that any jurisdiction could adopt for its own use. This model may be the final amalgamation that evolves as the national standard for ICS.

ICS For BFD
The Incident Command System used by the Boston Fire Department was formulated in May of 1993. It was updated and revised in 1997. It is the standard by which we operate at all incidents. It defines the functions of Command and the duties and responsibilities of the Incident Commander. It discusses size-up and the selection of strategic goals as well as tactical objectives. It also outlines the command staff that will evolve as a major incident escalates. It explains fireground sectoring both functionally and geographically. Personnel accountability, our Mayday procedure, and the shared responsibility of fireground safety are discussed in detail. These topics will be reviewed in future articles. Until then, I recommend that you periodically refer to the ICS manual to become comfortable with its use. Incident Command should not be equated with checklists and vests. It's definitely not tactics or strategy. ICS is a way to organize the fireground or incident. It is a thought process that can become second nature. ICS must be used and practiced over and over. Practice can include training, simulations, and its use at even smaller scaled incidents. Practice your arrival reports, progress reports and command transfers. This everyday practice will make it comfortable and easy to use when it really counts.