Fire Forest Service Management

United States Department of Agriculture Fire Forest Service Management Volume 45, NO.1 1984 Notes 40th ANNIVERSARY United States Department of Fire Agriculture Management Forest service Notes Volume 45, No. An international quarterly periodical devoted to 1984 forest fire management Fife Management Notes is published by Contents the FOrest Service 01 the United Stales Department of Agriculture, Washinglon, D.C. The Secretary of Agriculture has determined tnet Ihe publication of this periodical is necessary in the trensac. 3 Unified Command: A Management Concept non of the public business required by Jerry Monesmith, Marvin Newell, Jim Whitson, and law of this Department. Use 01 funds for printing this periodical has been ap Dick Montague proved by the Director of the Otuce 01 Management and Budget through 7 Keeping Pace With New Technology: Technical Fire Man September 30, 198-4. agement Course Subscriptions may be obtained from the Dr. Stewart G. Pickford and Ai Brown Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing 011ice, 10 Using Decision Analysis To Evaluate Fire Hazard Effects Washington, D.C. 20402. of Timber Harvesting NOTE-The use ot traoe. tirm, or cor David L. Radloff poration names in this publication is for the information and convenience of the 17 Height of Stem-Bark Char Underestimates Flame Length reader. Such use does not constitute an official endorsement of any product or in Prescribed Bums service by the U.S. Department of Michael D. Cain Agricuilure. 22 The First 40 Years Discleimer; IndiVidual authors are responsr bte lor the technical accuracy 01the matenat Gladys D. Daines presented in Fire Management Notes. 25 Silver Smokey Awarded Posthumously to DeBernardo Send suggestions and articles to Chief, Forest Service lAttn; Fire Management 26 Recent Fire Publications Notes), P.O. Box 2417, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Washington, DC 20013. 27 Research News John A. Block, Secretary 28 Author Index 1983 U.S. Department of AgriCUlture 29 Subject Index 1983 A. Max Peterson, Chief Forest Service L.A. Amicarella, Director Cooperative Fire Protection COVer: Smokey Bear, America's lire prevention symbol, is 40 years old. Story begins on p. 22. Francis R. Russ, General Manager 2 Fire Management Notes Unified Command: A Management conceptt Jerry Monesmith, Marvin Newell, Jim Whitson, and Dick Montague Safety and Training Officer, USDA Forest Service, Wash ington, D,C.; Staff Specialist, USDA Forest Service, FlRETlP Project, Boise, Idaho; Staff Specialist, USDA Forest Service, FIRETlP Project, Boise, Idaho; and Re gional Fire Director, USDA Forest Service, San Francisco, Calif. More than 90 percent of the emer uniform and trackable procedures that goals, recommendations, and proce gencies that occur daily in the United enable all emergency response agen dural guidelines. These assist in es States are handled by local agencies cies to perform their roles effectively. tablishing a management framework in their initial attack responses. In a Unified command overcomes much of that fits the size and type of emer small percentage of emergencies, the the inefficiency and duplication of ef gency and the agencies involved. responsible agency exhausts its own fort that now occurs when agencies No two emergencies are ever ex resources and calls on neighboring ju with functional and geographic juris actly alike. They each have their own risdictions for assistance. Many agen dictions, or agencies from different characteristics and problems. The uni cies are adept and experienced in aid government levels, find themselves fied command concept must be ap ing other agencies and assist each trying to work together without a plied in a configuration to meet the other on a routine basis. common system. needs of any given emergency. However, some 3 to 7 percent of The concept follows all the known all emergencies become serious and established principles of emer Using Unified Command enough to require the response of two gency management. It does not re We recommend using the unified or more agencies, each with its own quire new or untried approache, or command concept to: improve the in legal obligations on the incident. It is change the way various parts of the formation flow and interfaces among on these critical multiagency emer actual emergency are handled. The involved agencies; develop a siogle, gencies that use of the unified concept is very flexible; there are no collective approach to the incident, command concept can improve hard and fast rules to restrict experi regardless of its functional or geo coordination. enced emergency managers. There are graphic complexities; ensure that all What Unified Command Is Unified command is a management concept for coordinating responses to emergency incidents by two or more service agencies. It provides guide lines for agencies with different legal, geographic, and functional responsi bilities to work together effectively in any given situation. Unified command is the first con sistent, systematic means of organiz ing a variety of agencies into one con certed effort. The concept offers "The authors wish to acknowledge the original work of Bob Irwin, FlRESCOPE Program Manager. retired, USDA Forest Service. Forest Fire Laboratory, Riverside, Calif., and to ex press appreciation to the many persons who provided input, reviewed. and contributed to Unified commanders representing several agencies with geographic and functional responsibilities the unified command concept and this article. meet to develop an action plan. Volume 45, Number 1 3 agencies with responsibility for the in nificant opportunities to improve The Planning Process for Unified cident understand the collective or emergency management. If all in Command ganization's goals, objectives, and re volved agencies on emergencies are The planning process for a unified strictions; optimize the efforts of all using the same organization and pro command incident is the same as that agencies as they perform their respec cedures, there will he few differences for a "single" command incident, ex tive missions; and reduce omissions in operations. cept that more people are involved. and eliminate duplicated efforts. Establishing one command post on The process allows for jurisdictions In order to use the unified com a multiagency incident is basic to the with either functional or geographic mand concept most effectively, the unified command and incident com responsibilities-or both-to input agencies involved should he familiar mand system concepts. Collocating at and combine objectives and action. with the Incident Command System one onsite command post where all The planning process involves: col (ICS) training recommended as part agencies can operate together avoids lecting and documenting incident in of the National Interagency Incident the confusion created by separate telligence on weather conditions, sta Management System. The Incident command, planning, and logistical tus of the emergency, and the like; Command System is based on com setups. formulating each agency's objectives monality. All agencies use the same Another precept of unified com and limitations; establishing a single terminology and the same organiza mand is starting early. Technically, set of objectives by looking at the in tional structure. When they meet on unified command should hegin the cident as a whole; preparing an action an emergency, there is clear under moment two or more agencies have plan to meet those objectives; re standing of information and immedi jurisdictional responsibilities on an in viewing the action plan by all agen ate knowledge of the chain of com cident. Getting together early in an in cies; and activating the plan. mand. ICS procedures should he cident's development, staying to There is a great deal of flexibility uniform from agency to agency, thus gether, and sharing intelligence and in the way this process can he per facilitating every individual's ability individual agency decisions help fanned. If, for example, only a few to obtain instructions, pass on infor smooth the way for more complex op minutes are available to save a life or mation or requests, and perform erations if the emergency escalates. It a structure, the objectives and action assignments. is critical to avoid the idea that uni Illan can he formulated in an instant, ICS has tremendous adaptability. fied command begins once an incident and all directions and orders will he The more it is understood, the easier becomes a crisis. verbal. On the other hand, if the inci it will he to establish a command Following ICS, collocating, and dent response effort is a major one, structure that fits the particular char starting early melds different agencies then the whole process can he formal acter of any incident. Preemergency into one organization. The organiza ized and thoroughly documented. For simulations involving those agencies tion can be directed from one com experienced commanders and staff, that may he expected to participate in mand post, one set of plans can he the formal process only takes a short an actual incident are excellent exer prepared, and one logistical procedure time, even on complex incidents. cises for learning the system and ac can he followed. One organizational The process starts with the docu quainting the cooperators with each structure, one incident command post, mentation of the unified commanders' other. one planning process, and one order objectives, based upon the character This commonality is a major depar ing process enables a "unified" and potential of the incident. It is im ture from traditional ways agencies approach to the management of a portant to note that the ultimate com formerly operated, and it creates sig- multiagency incident. mand and responsibility for each 4 Fire Management Notes agency involved in a unified com When the action plan has been ter, and their agency's objectives. It is mand operation is never shared or ab drafted, it is reviewed and approved extremely important that they also dicated. Each agency's senior officer by the unified commanders before it present the limitations of their maintains agency authority and ac is distributed.

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