Tuesday and Wednesday of this week I had the opportunity to join approximately 20 others at the Marin County Office of Emergency Services for continued training on the Incident Command System (ICS) as part of the National Incident Management Systems (NIMS) National Standard Curriculum. The training was provided through the Center for Domestic Preparedness, a part of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security under FEMA. Also attending the training was the City’s Emergency Preparedness Coordinator, the City and Town Police Chiefs, the Tiburon Police Captain, and the Tiburon Town Manager.
The course, ICS-400, Advanced ICS, is the fourth in a series consisting of ICS-100, Introduction, ICS-200, Basic, and ICS-300, Intermediate. ICS was developed in the 1970’s following a series of catastrophic fires in California’s urban interface. Property damage ran into the millions, and many people died or were injured. After studying the case histories, it was discovered that response problems could rarely be attributed to lack of resources or failure of tactics. Instead, studies found that response problems were more likely to result from inadequate management than from any other single reason.
ICS was born. The Incident Command System is a standardized management tool for meeting the demands of small or large emergency or non-emergency situations. ICS represents the “best practices” and has become the standard for emergency management across the country - no longer just California. ICS is used for planned events, natural disasters, and acts of terrorism. ICS has become a model and is a fundamental and key feature of the National Incident Management System.
ICS is a management system designed to enable effective and efficient domestic incident management by integrating a combination of facilities, equipment, personnel, procedures, and communications operating within a common organizational structure, designed to enable effective and efficient domestic incident management. A basic premise of ICS is that it is widely applicable. It is used to organize both near-term and long-term field-level operations for a broad spectrum of emergencies, from small to complex incidents, both natural and manmade. ICS is used by all levels of government: Federal, State, local, and tribal - as well as many private-sector and non-governmental organizations. ICS is applicable across disciplines. It is normally structured to facilitate activities in five major functional areas: command, operations, planning, logistics, and finance and administration. Bottom line - using ICS, everyone can talk to everyone else involved using the same language.
Annually, Belvedere and Tiburon participate with the County of Marin on an Emergency Preparedness Exercise. Scenarios are drafted to “test” first responders. On October 23, the City (and Town) will participate in the 2008 Silver Sentinel Exercise. The table-top exercise will test the ability of first responders to react, make decisions, and allocate resources following a major Bay Area earthquake crippling access, transportation, electricity, water, and safety - not to mention major loss of life. In California, in the event of an emergency event, public employees are AUTOMATICALLY Disaster Service Workers. If at work, they cannot go home. If at home they must report. From the front desk receptionist, to the public works employee, to the planner, to the accountant, to the building inspector, to the City Manager - ALL will be first responders. Emergency preparedness training, ICS training, CPR & First Aid and more are key to ensure that Belvedere and other communities stand at the ready in the event of any necessary emergency response.
But here’s something else you should know - In the event of a crippling Bay Area event, local resources will be depleted almost before the event. Local success will not only depend on local resources and local first responders, it will depend on the preparedness level of each and every one of you. The City, American Red Cross, Tiburon Fire Protection District, the County, and others offer emergency preparedness training and tips on preparing a local home emergency kit. GET READY TODAY…..or you won’t be tomorrow.
Center for Domestic Preparedness
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