Emergency Response Program 

Tools To Manage A Response

Incident Command System

ICS is a standardized on-scene emergency management system specifically designed to allow its user(s) to adopt an integrated organizational structure equal to the complexity and demands of single or multiple incidents, without being hindered by jurisdictional boundaries.

This approach:

• integrates the party responsible for the spill, the state, and the Coast Guard in a unified command structure that expands according to need, and
• establishes a pre-determined decision-making process and a common language that significantly reduces confusion and misunderstandings among personnel from different organizations.

This structure has been adapted by industry and government agencies to define and coordinate their roles and responsibilities in the event of a spill. The Incident Command System has been tested and practiced extensively in drills.

The National Incident Management System is the response management system (mandated by the federal government for all emergency responses) used by most plan holders and approved by the Northwest Area Committee.

• National Incident Management System

Additional Resources

• Geographic Response Plans
• Northwest Area Contingency Plan
  Regional Response Team/Northwest Area Committee web page for downloading the final report.
• Incident Command System Forms
• Incident Management Handbook
  This handbook is also available in other languages. Check the HOMEPORT (US Department of Homeland Security, US Coast Guard) Web site for more information: http://homeport.uscg.mil/mycg/portal/ep/home.do

[print version]