Evolution of Incident Command System - Coursework Example

Background 2 Statement of the problem 3 Aims of incident command system 3 Significance of incident command system 4 Evolution of incident command system 4 Problems that triggered formation of incident command system 4 Fire risk assessment for high rise building 5 Building regulation act 5 Mechanical and electrical standards of a building 6 Fire safety order 2005 6 Definition of incident command system 6 Implementation at a major incident 6 Incident command system extended command structure 7 Incident command system bronze level 7 Incident command system silver level 7 Incident command system gold level 7 Incident command system structuring 7 Incident command system sectorisation 8 Incident command system fire sector 8 Incident command system search sector 8 Incident command system lobby sector 8 Incident command system tactical modes of incident intervention 8 The Offensive tactic mode 8 The defensive tactic mode 9 The transitional tactic mode 9 Incident command system span of control 9 Incident command system Line of command 9 Responsibilities of sector commander 9 Responsibilities of operations commander 10 Responsibilities of incident commander 10 Incident command system cordons 10 Inner cordon 11 Outer cordon 11 Incident command system for high rise building 11 Dynamic risk assessment of high rise building 12 Advantages of incident command system at emergency incidents 13 Harrow court incident 13 Dynamic risk assessment 15 Dynamic risk assessment and Harrow Court incident 15 Importance of inter-agency liason 15 How other agencies could have helped at Harrow Court incident 16 Conclusion 16 Works Cited 17 Background Incidents of fire outbreaks cost loss of lives and destruction of property (Brunacini, 1991). There is need for competent risk assessment and recommendations of incident action plan that meets required safety regulations (Bartosh, 2003). Fire fighters may fail to have training on fire fighting safety precautions like carrying out dynamic risk assessment and this can cost their lives. There is need for dynamic risk assessment in order for sectarisation and tactic mode to be issued. Incidents require competent reporting (Thomas, 2001) in order to provide a learning ground that will help in setting up safety precautions to prevent similar future risks recurring. Continuous risk assessment should follow on-site incident intervention measures until the fire incident if brought under control. Statement of the problem Response to emergency incidents is characterized by inefficient procedures that are associated with poor information analysis that lead into unreliable incident information; unclear lines of authority; duplication of effort when many command staff report to the same supervisor and lack of common language and terminologies that lead into presence of different organizational structures and cultures. Aims of incident command system To strive towards implementation of using common language To promote collective approval of on-site operations through dynamic risk assessment To promote sharing of facilities among agencies in order to reduce response costs To improve coordination of respondents in the event of response Significance of incident command system The report on the case study will highlight improvement on responses to incidents; encourage inter-agency training programs and operations; provide guidelines on responsibilities of different levels of command in incident command system; promote need for dynamic risk assessment; evaluation of safety action plan and incident action plan. Evolution of incident command system Problems that triggered formation of incident command system Incident command system evolved due to inefficiency and ineffective response (Robinson, 1998) in incident management. There were problems of language barrier as a result of use of many languages (national fire protection association, 2000). There were different emergency responses due to different organizational structure. There were no inter-agency partnership and this led into lack of reliable and feasible incident information. The agencies operated independently, used own facilities and this increased costs. On-site incident procedures were compromised with no clear-cut dynamic incident risk assessment. Fire risk assessment for high rise building It shows if residents have knowledge of fire control and fire management (Diguiseppi, et al. 2002) and if there are any fire control procedures that are in place. It provides information on whether there are installed fire extinguishers, automatic smoke detectors or automatic sprinkler system (Diguiseppi, et al. 2002) and if they are functional. The dates of their check for functionality provide a proof that they are well maintained. The report provides information on whether there are clear exit channels for escape in the event of fire outbreak and if the exit channels have functional lighting system (Diguiseppi, et al. 2002). The report also shows if the exit or emergency exits have directional signs in red color to show the route the occupants should follow to get to a safe place (Diguiseppi, et al. 2002). Building regulation act The erected building should provide the required fire safety precautions for the users of the building and have safer access by fire fighters The building should meet minimum required standards for the insurance firm to insure it against risks of fire outbreaks. Mechanical and electrical standards of a building The building should be constructed in such a way that in the event of fire outbreak: Occupants get warned and take recommended action and it’s resistant to momentary collapse (Diguiseppi, et al. 2002) to enable users to escape to a safer place before it finally collapses. This also gives evacuators time to evacuate persons in the building. Fire safety order 2005 The fire safety order 2005 provides that any person who is in-charge of he building should have a fire risk assessment report in place. Definition of incident command system Incident command system is a system designed in order to achieve co-ordination that is necessary for carrying out efficient and effective incident response. Implementation at a major incident Structuring of incident command system at a major incident requires planning and exercising procedures and protocols associated with the incident. The procedures involve allocation of resources necessary for the incident and personnel required to bring the incident under control. Under supervision of incident commander sectorisation is done that divides command staff into search sector, fire sector and lobby sector. Incident commander achieves this through analysis of dynamic risk assessment. Incident command system extended command structure Extended command structure stratifies command staff into three levels. Incident command system bronze level These are on-site forward control point personnel and their main responsibilities are to deploy resources required for the incident. They are involved with operations during the incident. Incident command system silver level The personnel implements tactical mode those are required to be used in the incident. Silver incident commander evaluates best options for the incident and informs his team accordingly. He or she implements safety plan and incident action plan. Incident command system gold level They develop command functions and analyze, evaluate and disseminate strategies required to address the incident. The gold level incident commander develops safety of responders and manages resources. Incident command system structuring Incident command system structuring is carried out through sectorisation, development of tactic modes of interventions and establishing span of control Incident command system sectorisation Incident sectorisation is carried out following dynamic risk assessment and on the site through continuous risk assessment. Sectorisation involves allocation of resources. incident command system has three principle sectors Incident command system fire sector This is composed of command staff that is responsible for fighting fires. Incident command system search sector It is composed of command staff that is responsible for evacuation and search tasks Incident command system lobby sector They provide support services. Incident command system tactical modes of incident intervention Tactical mode is the incident action plan and is governed by safety action plan. There are three tactic modes The Offensive tactic mode This is intensive incident action plan and is used when the importance of carrying our rescue mission far outweighs any risks to be encountered. The defensive tactic mode This incident action plan is used when the risk involved is greater than any value or benefit to be achieved at last. It involves external and aerial jet combat of the incident. The transitional tactic mode This incident action plan employs both offensive and defensive tactic plans. It involves sectorisation of the incident. Incident command system span of control Span of control is the number of command staff that are under supervision or guidance of one team leader. It is expressed as a ration. Incident command system Line of command Responsibilities of sector commander Establishing incident priorities Coordinating resource use Ensuring workers and public health and safety Providing response direction Responsibilities of operations commander Conducts initial incident evaluation In charge of communication Formulates incident management strategy Develop action plan and assign resources Responsibilities of incident commander Call for supplementary resources Develops and implements organizational command structure Responsible for reviewing, evaluating and revising incident action plan Responsible for transferring and terminating command Incident command system cordons Cordons are command staff that seals the site of incident from access during incident operation. There are two types of cordons Inner cordon They surround the scene of incident and ensure sufficient safety is kept at optimum. They allow access into the site to incident command system staff. Outer cordon They form circumference outside the inner cordon. They are support personnel from ambulance agencies that offer on the site first aid and police agency that help to keep curious public away. Incident command system for high rise building Fire fighters encounter a lot of difficulties when carrying out dynamic risk assessment of high rise buildings. The problems are: It is risky to access high rise building in the event of fire Ventilation of a high rise building is more pronounced with winds speeds being very high than at normal level. These winds help to fan fire and increase spread of fires within the building. High rise building is characterized by high heat retention abilities. In the event of fire, the hot air that is breathed is fatal. This adds risk of rescue. There is a risk of accessing the floor that is affected by the fire from the floor below If water has to be delivered to the affected floor, it may become difficult due to effect of ventilation The high rise building should comply with building regulation act and have provisions for wet or dry standpipes, automatic water sprinkler system, installed automatic smoke detectors and means of escape to a safe place should have no obstruction and direction of exit channels for escape should have directional signs indicating the way out. Dynamic risk assessment of high rise building The following are the main factors that are considered when carrying out dynamic risk assessment for a high rise building. Analysis of equipments that will be used, analysis of mechanical devices to protect the building from fire outbreaks like installed automatic smoke detectors and automatic water sprinkler system. Analysis of ventilation and efforts in place to counter spread of fires due to ventilation effects Assessment of appropriate incident action plan Evaluation of the staging area Circumference of inner and outer cordons Resources that need to be used and their convenience Current and previous health and safety measures in place Advantages of incident command system at emergency incidents Incident command system helps to provide detailed analysis of incidents. This provides understanding on how the fire was started, the mechanism through which the fire spread and how communication was carried out. There is also provision of CCTV to show footage of how command staff performed. Incident command system helps to rescue persons who are trapped in the building safely. This helps to save lives and insurance costs that the insurance firm could have incurred as a result of compensation Incident command system helps to prevent spread of fires within and between buildings by providing timely fire fighting intervention measures. Harrow court incident The Harrow court incident was a success although it was characterized by laxity of safety rules and regulations (Buckle & Mars, 2000). There are no measures to ensure risks are addressed with sufficient measures required of them. The two fire fighters, Jeffrey Wornham and Michael Miller entered into the harrow court to rescue Ms Natalie close without protective gear like fire proof helmets and fire fighting equipments. Protective gear should have been used. There was no dynamic risk assessment (Paton, 1996) in place for the incident management. This contributed to the death of the firefighters. Firefighters should assemble to carry out action plan. The harrow court 15th floor is prone to winds (Ronald W, 2003) with a higher speed. Opening of the door and leaving it open fanned the fire and made it uncontrollable. The flat’s entrance doors were not self closing. There were no fire protection measures like automatic sprinkler system that could have helped to quench the fire. There were no automatic smoke detectors that could have send warning to the residents. Self closing door should be used. They should provide enough resistance to prevent spread of fire or effect of the wind. The harrow court had no fire resistant partition to check spread of fire. There was no fire resistant lobby at the ground level. These should be installed and provided for. The automatic opening vent manual override was not indicated. It should be indicated. The firefighting officers had no training on dynamic risk assessment (Buckle & Mars, 2000). The two fire fighters who perished did not comply with operational procedures that are required to ensure a safe system of work is in place. There was no training on effect of ventilation of high rise building. This led into leaving the door into flat 85 open and resulted into fanning of fire by droughts of wind. Periodic training and refresher courses should be in place. There was no briefing of the responders on the action plan or the layout of the high rise building because Mr. Brown made an error of the building when he communicated about a fire outbreak. This means that the first fire fighters assumed responsibilities. Dynamic risk assessment should get the first priority. Dynamic risk assessment This is initial assessment task that is planned on the way and ensures every command staff knows exactly its role and responsibilities. Dynamic risk assessment takes into account safety plan and incident action plan. On arrival at the scene or incident site, the incident commander, on assessing the magnitude of the fire recommends which tactical mode to be applied. For safety purposes, defensive mode is initialized in most cases. Dynamic risk assessment and Harrow Court incident There were no measures in place to have effective dynamic risk assessment because initially the caller had misled the firefighter and the action plan they had was not applicable for the Harrow Court. There was no initial assessment of safety plan or action plan. Importance of inter-agency liason It helps in fostering networking within different agencies and this enhances partnership It leads into development of a unified command structure Staffs are able to move internationally and take up position in without any confrontation arising due to conflict of interest Ensures there is establishment of common terminologies and common structures that are internationally in line agreed titles and responsibilities How other agencies could have helped at Harrow Court incident Security agencies could have helped to investigate if the incident was a case of terrorist attack Community liason agencies could have helped to investigate if fire safety order 2005 was enforced. It would also help in ensuring products like tea candles had required safety precautions that govern their use. This would have allowed for printing of handling instructions of tea candles and help in reduction of the incident. Ambulance agencies would have helped to provide on-the-site first aid and help in handling victims of the incident appropriately. They would also have taken part in the evacuation team as search sector personnel. Conclusion There is need to have proper dynamic and continuous risk assessment in the event of a fire incident. There should be training of incident command staff and introduction of refresher courses to evaluate preparedness of the firefighters for their tasks. High rise building should be installed with automatic sprinkler system, smoke detectors and standpipes whether wet or dry. Safety measures should be followed by all users of high rise building. The building should meet building regulation act and have fire safety order 2005 be practiced by all users of the building. Works Cited Bartosh, D. (2003). incident command management in the era of terrorism. police executive reaserch foru . Brunacini, A. (1991, January). Command Strategy. 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(2001). Information Security Risk analysis. CRC Press. Read More