Module 2:

Organization and
Staffing
 Module 2 Objectives
Upon completion of this module, the
participants will be able to:
1. Describe major ICS positions and their
responsibilities;
2. Describe information flow within the
ICS organization; and
3. Develop an appropriate organization
chart for a specific incident
ICS Organization
 The ICS Organization

• Built around 5 major functions

• Only those parts of the organization

required are filled.

• Establishes lines or supervisory

authority and formal reporting
relationships
ICS Major Organizational Elements
ICS Organization Structure Managerial Position
Incident Command
Command

Finance / Section
Operations Planning Logistics Chief
Administration

Branch Branch Branch Branch Directors

Division Group Supervisors

Single Resources
Leaders
Task Forces
Strike Teams
 Primary Managerial
Positions
• Command
• Chief
• Director
• Supervisor
• Leader
 Deputy

• Works with those in the primary

managerial functions
• May be from the same agency or from
an assisting agency.
• May also be used at “Section” and
“Branch” levels of ICS.
• Has the same qualifications as the
person they work for.
 Assistant
• Serve as subordinates to Command Staff
positions, particularly Liaison, Information,
and safety Officer.
• May also work for Unit Leader.
• Must have a level of technical capability,
qualifications, and responsibility subordinate
to primary position.
 Incident
Commander
 Incident Commander and
Command Staff
Incident Command
Information
Safety
Liaison

Operations Planning Logistics Finance/Admin

Section Section Section Section

• Responsible for overall management

response operations.
• Selected by the Responsible Official based
on qualifications and experience.
 Incident Commander

• Assesses the situation/receives briefing from

Responsible Official or outgoing Incident
Commander.
• Determines incident objectives and
strategies.
• Establishes priorities in consultation with the
staff.
• Establishes Incident Command Post (ICP).
 Incident Commander
• Establishes appropriate ICS organization
based on the situation.
• Ensures planning meeting are scheduled as
required.
• Approves and authorizes the implementation
of the Incident Action Plan.
• Ensures that adequate safety measures are
in place.
• Coordinates with key people and officials.
 Incident Commander
• Approves requests for additional resources
and for the release of resources.
• Keeps DRRMC Chairperson and/or
Responsible Official informed of incident
status.
• Authorizes release of information to the news
media.
• Coordinates activity for all Command and
General Staff
 Incident Commander
The Incident Commander decides and sets
objectives based on the following priorities:
• Life Safety of the responders, disaster
victims and the general public
• Incident Stabilization
• Property Protection/Conservation
Functional Responsibilities of an
Incident Commander
Planning Logistics

Command Information

IC performs all ICS

Operations functions until Safety
additional positions
are filled.
Finance/
Admin. Liaison

B-17
Command Staff
 Command Staff

INCIDENT
COMMANDER

INFORMATION
COMMAND
LIAISON
STAFF SAFETY

OPERATIONS
PLANNING/ FINANCE/
LOGISTICS
INTEL ADMIN.
 Information Officer
• Focal person for
information
dissemination.
• Works closely with all the
different Information
Officers/media.
• One Lead Information
Officer per incident and
may have assistant(s)
 Liaison Officer
• Contact point for
representatives of
assisting and
cooperating agencies
(DRRMC member and
partner-agencies)
 Safety Officer
• Works with Operations on
tactics
• Anticipates, detects, and
corrects unsafe situations.
• Has emergency authority to
stop unsafe acts/ operations.
• One Lead Safety Officer per
incident and may have
assistant(s)
 Agency Representatives
• NOT part of the Command Staff
• They are individuals assigned to an incident
by assisting/ cooperating agency.
• Agency representatives have authority to
make decisions for their agency.
• Agency representatives report to the Liaison
Officer (if designated) or to the Incident
Commander.
General Staff
 The General Staff
INCIDENT
COMMANDER

FINANCE
OPERATIONS PLANNING LOGISTICS
ADMIN.

General Staff
Positions
Operations
section
 Operations Section
• First organization assigned to the incident
• Responsible for managing, directing and
coordinating all tactical operations at the
incident
• The need to expand the Operations Section
is generally dictated by the number of
tactical resources involved and is
influenced by span of control
considerations.
• Headed by Operations Section Chief
 Composition of Operations
Section
• Branches, Divisions and
Groups
• Task Forces
• Strike Teams
• Single Resources
• Staging Areas
 Branches

• Are used when the number of Divisions or

Groups exceeds the span of control.
• Can be either geographical or functional.
• Identified by Roman numeral or functional
name.
• Managed by a Supervisor.
 Divisions

• Divided
geographically based
on the needs of the Operations Section
Planning Section
incident;
• Labeled using Division A Division B
alphabet characters
(A, B, C, etc.); A B
• Managed by a
Supervisor.
 Groups

• Describe functional areas of operation

• Divisions and groups can be used together
on an incident. They are at an equal level
in the organization.

Operations Section

Health & Safety Public Works

Group Group
 Special Operations Branch
• Example: The Air Operations Branch
• Activated to coordinate the use of aviation
resources;
• Managed by the Air Operations Branch
Director who reports to the Operations
Section Chief;
• Mainly include the following functional
groups: Air Support Group and Air Tactical
Group
 Task Forces

• Task Forces are a

combination of mixed
Operations Section
resources with
common Task Force

communications Strike Team

operating under the Single Resource

direct supervision of a
Task Force Leader.
 Strike Teams

• Strike Teams are a set

number of resources of Operations Section

the same kind and type

Task Force
with common
Strike Team
communications
Single Resource
operating under the
direct supervision of a
Strike Team Leader.
 Single Resources

• Single Resources may

be: Operations Section
• Individuals;
• A piece of equipment Task Force

and its personnel Strike Team

complement; Single Resource
• A crew or team of
individuals with an
identified supervisor.
 Staging Areas

Set up the incident where

resources can wait for a
tactical assignment:
• All resources in the
Staging Area are
available and ready for
Available
assignment.
• Out-of-service resources
are not located at the
Staging Area.
 Staging Areas

Once designated, a Staging Area Manager

will:
• be assigned;
• report to the Operations Section Chief.

If there is no Operations Section Chief,Available

the
Staging Area Manager reports to the
Incident Commander.
 Staging Areas:
Chain of Command
Incident
Commander

Public Information
Officer
Safety
Officer
Liaison
Officer

Operations
Section

Available
Staging
Area

Health Search Investigation

Group Group Group

Canine Strike
Searchers
Team
Planning
Section
 Planning Section

• Responsible for planning services

• Collects situation and resources status
information, evaluates and processes them
• Develops Incident Action Plan to accomplish
objectives.
Available
• Maintains resource & situation status
• Headed by Planning Section Chief
 Units in Planning Section

• Resource Unit
• Situation Unit
• Documentation Unit
• Demobilization Unit
Available
 Technical Specialists
• Assigned wherever needed
depending on the
requirements of the incident.
• Examples :
– Flood control specialists
– Environmental impact
Available
specialists
– Meteorologists
– Fuels specialist
– Structural engineer
Logistics
Section
 Logistics Section

• Provides resources and all other services

needed to support the incident:
– Facilities
– Transportation
– Communications
– Supplies
Available
– Equipment Maintenance and Fuel
– Food Services
– Medical Services
• Headed by Logistics Section Chief
 Units in Logistics Section

• Supply Unit
• Facilities Unit
• Ground Support
• Communications Unit
Available
• Food Unit
• Medical Unit
Finance/
Administration
Section
 Finance and Admin Section

• Monitors incident costs

• Maintains financial records
• Administers procurement contracts
• Performs time recording
• Headed by Finance/Admin Section Chief
 Units in Finance/Admin
Section
• Time Unit
• Procurement Unit
• Compensation/Claims Unit
• Cost Unit
Available
 Common Responsibilities of all
Unit Leaders

• Obtain briefing from Section Chief

• Participate in Incident Planning meetings
if necessary
• Determine current status of unit activities
• Confirm dispatch and estimated time ofAvailable
arrival of staff and supplies
 Common Responsibilities of all
Unit Leaders

• Assign specific duties to staff and

supervise;
• Develop and implement accountability,
safety, and security measures for
personnel and resources
Available
• Supervise demobilization of unit, including
storage of supplies.
 Common Responsibilities of all
Unit Leaders

• Provide supply unit leader with list of

supplies to be replenished.
• Maintain unit records, including unit log.

Available
 Flow of Information within
the ICS Organization
• There must be complete freedom for
flow of information within the ICS
organization to the possible extent
• Orders, directives, resource requests
and status changes must follow the
Available
chain of command, unless otherwise
directed
 Module 2 Objectives
Upon completion of this module, the
participants will be able to:
1. Describe major ICS positions and their
responsibilities;
2. Describe information flow within the
ICS organization; and
3. Develop an appropriate organization
chart for a specific incident
QUESTIONS???