Incident Management System SOP #2025 Glossary

The information is a glossary of terms and definitions related to fire department operations. It includes definitions for various types of alarms, response codes, zones, positions, and tactical strategies. It also explains the roles and responsibilities of different personnel within the incident command structure. There are also descriptions of safety measures and communication protocols. Overall, it provides a comprehensive overview of key concepts and terminology used in firefighting operations. SAFD IMS policy appendix 1 glossary. 311 regular alarm, a multi-unit response dispatch to a reported fire and a normal-sized residence or a reported fire that can be easily controlled by one full attack team. A 311 assignment consists of three engine companies, one bladder or truck company, one battalion chief. 422 regular alarm, a full multi-unit response dispatched to a reported fire in an apartment building slash complex, commercial structure, strip mall, dangerous structure, or high-life safety structure. A 422 assignment consists of four engine companies, two ladder or truck companies, two battalion, two total battalion chiefs. 30-foot rule is a general rule of thumb to position the apparatus at least 30 feet away from the involved building. Deteriorating conditions require a greater distance. Abandon the structure order, an emergency retreat where all personnel working inside the fire structure will immediately exit the structure as fast as possible. This order indicates there is a life-threatening hazard and firefighters are not to delay exiting the structure. No attempt will be made to save equipment and interior hose lines should remain in place. The emergency evacuation evac tone may accompany this order. Accountability, an all-level, strategic, tactical, and task-embedded safety responsibility of the managing and tracking the position and function of all assigned personnel. Accountability location is a location where units drop off their passports prior to making entry into hazard zones. Located either at a forward apparatus near the work entrance to a geographic location or it is physically located with a DGS working in the warm zone of the incident. Benchmarks, statements made during status changes or TANs that inform the IC of the initiation or completion of a tactical priority. The benchmarks are primary slash secondary search all clear, fire control water on the fire, fire knockdown, fire control, salvage, salvage complete, extension, extension complete, ventilation, ventilation initiated, utilities, utilities cut, exposures, exposures protected, supply, supply complete, on-scene decontamination, decon complete. Branch, for larger incidents requiring multiple resources and or multiple operational areas the next subdivision between the IC and DGS is a branch. Branch directors coordinate and manage several division slash groups that the IC assigns to them on a separate radio channel. Branches can and should be used when span of control is exceeded. Branches can be named based either on function or geography. Building size is based on the percentage amount of area a 200 foot hand line will be able to access when parked 30 feet from the building. Small 100% of area, medium 75% of area, large 50% of area, mega 25% of area. Code one response defined as a non-urgent response utilizing normal roadway driving and obeying traffic laws no lights or sirens. Code three response defined as an emergency response when responding code three warning lights must be on and sirens must be sounded as required by law. Cold zone, area outside the warm zone that is safe for personnel not wearing any PPE or an SEBA. The cold zone typically contains the strategically positioned command post, staging, rehab, logistic or logistical support. Command post, CP, the location from which command manages the incident. The command post should be easily identified, stationary, and its location known to all responding resources. Stationary command positions. There are three command positions. They are investigating command position, fast attacking mobile command position inside the hot zone, command position stationary inside of a command post, CP. Command staff consists of the incident commander and various positions that report directly to the IC and are assigned responsibility for activities that are not included in the general staff functional elements. Typically the IC assigns three staff positions. They are the public information officer, the safety officer, and the liaison officer. Additional positions may be assigned depending on the nature, scope, and complexity of the incident. Command team. The command team is all assigned command and general staff. Conditions, actions, needs can report. Units assigned to working positions should structure all communications to the IC as they can report. Crew slash unit, at least two people equipped with full PPE and working portable radios. Critical factors. The eight critical factors are the items an IC must consider when evaluating tactical situations. They are occupancy, life safety, building, arrangement, resources, fire, action, special circumstances. D slash D division and or group. Defensive fire conditions. A defensive situation where the incident problem has evolved to the point that lives and property are no longer savable and often some tactics are no longer effective or safe. The entire defensive strategy is based on protecting both exposures and firefighters. All defensive activities will occur outside of the hot zone. Dedicated dispatcher. Located at dispatch, PSAP, this person monitors all of the radio traffic for an assigned tactical channel. Dispatch center slash public safety answering point, PSAP. A centralized dispatch center that receives 9-1-1 calls and dispatches the appropriate level local resource level to mitigate an emergency. Division. A geographical subdivision of the incident managed by a supervisor. Divisions should be named in correlation to their geographic position. Division slash group supervisor, DGS. An officer, preferably a chief, which is assigned to manage a geographic slash functional area. Embedded safety. A concept that encompasses safety principles for an assigned work area. The following are examples. Manage accountability using the passport system. Manage the work times of all crews. Manage rotation of crews in and out of hazard zones. Manage the recycle and the rehab of crews. Monitor for any significant safety hazards. Maintain crew integrity, no freelancing. Emergency evacuation evac tone. A tone sounded over the tactical channel at the request of the IC. This tone will only be used when the IC feels it is imperative to rapidly remove all personnel operating in the interior portions of a structure. Upon hearing this tone, all personnel working inside the fire structure will immediately exit the structure as fast as possible. This tone indicates there is a life-threatening hazard and firefighters are not to delay the exiting the structure. No attempt will be made to save equipment and hose lines should remain in place. Emergency traffic. A radio message that only the IC can transmit. The message is given when the IC determines that a life-threatening hazard to firefighters exists. The IC makes the determination via personal assessment and or received priority traffic is critical enough to warrant emergency traffic. Exit the structure order. An orderly withdrawal where the interior lines and equipment will be withdrawn and repositioned when changing to a defensive strategy. Fast attack command position. The initial incident command IIC is mobile and enters the hot zone when in the offensive strategy in full PPE with a locked portable radio supervising and assisting their crew in the attack while commanding the initial incident deployment. Fire control. The benchmark transmitted when the main body of fire has been extinguished and all seven sides of the fire have been confirmed as having no fire extension or when extension has been controlled in an assigned unit's operational area. Fire knocked down. The benchmark given to indicate the main body of fire has been knocked down. In a unit's assigned geographic work area but the seven sides of the fire have not been checked for any fire extension. Follow-up report is a report that follows the IRR that includes the result of 360 and the initial accountability location. A fast act attacking IC will deliver their follow-up report prior to making entry into the hot zone. Forward engine. An engine that is located in one of the primary forward attacking positions on the fire ground where equipment, hose, and water are deployed from the engine directly onto or around hazard zones. Freelance. Independently operating on the fire ground in any capacity without your supervisor's knowledge or consent or when your supervisor is not aware of where you are. Essentially it is when firefighters do what they want to do when they want to do it without an assignment or consent. General staff. Functional positions sections that may be assigned to by the IC to maintain a manageable span of control for the incident. Section chiefs report directly to the IC. The command team consists of the command and general staff. Greater alarm. A pre-packaged response for the IC to utilize for incidents that cannot be mitigated with a 311 or 422 response. Group. A functional based work assignment consisting of crews managed by a supervisor. The group should be named based on the function of the group. Hazard zones. Encompasses the hot zone, warm zone, and cold zone of an incident. High-rise pack. A pre-loaded bundle of attack hose with a nozzle. Hold the assignment. A resource determination that is made by the IC acknowledging that the dispatch resources are adequate. Horizontal standpipe. HZSP. A three-inch hose that has a dated Y attached to the end. Hot zone. The IDLH area of the incident. All personnel working in the hot zone must be wearing full PPE. Immediately dangerous to life and health. IDLH. OSHA defines IDLH as the following. Any condition that poses an immediate or delayed threat to life or that would cause irreversible adverse health effects or that would interfere with an individual's ability to escape unaided from a permit space. Incident Action Plan, IAP, represents the tactical priorities based on the chosen strategy that the IC must accomplish to bring the incident under control. Incident Command Technician, ICT, a person who assists and drives the BC, Chief's Aid. Incident Commander, IC, the person with the overall responsibility of managing the entire incident case scene. Initial Incident Commander, IIC, the first arriving unit that will size up the incident's critical factors, declares the incident strategy, and assumes command. Initial Radio Report, IRR. The initial IC begins the command, control, and communication process with an IRR. This report provides a standard size-up of the conditions seen from the initial command position. Investigative Command Position, nothing showing. An IIC on a portable radio, evaluating conditions to identify the incident problem. In Transit, the time it takes for a company to reach their assigned area after receiving an order from the IC. Key Pumper, an engine that makes a direct connection from hydrant via the intake valve keystone, and then pumps water to the forward engine through the large diameter discharge. This overcomes the friction loss in the supply hose up to 1,000 feet, and it delivers the max GPM possible from the hydrant to the forward engine up to 2,000 GPM using 5-inch LDH. Level 1 is activated when the IIC gives their initial radio report and assumes command. All other first alarm units will stage by announcing Level 1. Level 1 units shall not pass their last tactical option. Level 2, used for greater alarm assignments, and is defined as a location near the incident scene where later arriving resources will assemble. Mayday, any time a firefighter cannot safely exit a hazard zone. A mayday will also be declared for any unit operating inside a hazard zone who does not answer their portable radio after three attempts. Mid-rise, buildings that are two to five stories in height, in which aerial apparatus may reach the upper floors and the roof. National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, NIOSH, is the U.S. federal agency responsible for conducting research and making recommendations for the prevention of work-related injury and illness. NIOSH is part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, CDC, within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. National Incident Management System, NIMS, incident typing. NIMS has typed incidents as they pertain to the fiscal responsibility, the number of agencies required, and the amount of interoperability required to mitigate emergencies. They are Type 1, federal deployment requiring large amounts of resource. Type 2, federal deployment requiring small to medium amounts of resource. Type 3, state-level deployments not involving the federal government. Type 4, local deployment requiring two or more agencies to mitigate. Type 5, local deployment requiring one single agency to mitigate. Neutral plane, in a ventilation-limited fire, it is the dividing line between the high-pressure hot exhaust vent and the cooler inlet in a doorway or opening. Normal means of egress, a continuous and unobstructed exit path from a structure that is used under normal conditions such as hallways and doors. Objectives, strategic level goals set forth in the IC's IAP that are accomplished through tactical task-level work. On deck, a forward-staging position located just outside the immediate hot zone. Operational period, the period of time scheduled for executing a given set of operational actions as determined by the IC and the IAP. Passing command, if the situation is not stabilized and there is a delay in the arrival of a chief officer, the fast-attacking IIC may pass command to another on-scene company officer. Passport, a 3x4 inch card that is marked with the company identification. Pats of the crew members, PATs of the crew members assigned to each apparatus are affixed to the passport. Personal accountability report, PAR, a confirmation that all personnel assigned to a crew or multiple crews assigned to one geographic area of the hazard zone are accounted for. Personal accountability tag, PAT, a color-coded name tag. Post-incident analysis, PIA, a formal detailed review and analysis of a large-scale complex or challenging operation. These types of incidents only involve a large-scale response and often assistance from outside agencies. The PIA is used to reconstruct the incident to determine if the department had an appropriate tactical plan and to evaluate if SOGs, SOPs, were followed. It also determines how effective the response was in mitigating the incident. Every aspect of the incident is carefully reviewed and analyzed to determine what went well, what should be sustained, what could be improved, and why. The results of the PIA can suggest change to a department's plans and procedures that may be necessary. Post-incident critique, PIC, based on the findings of the PIA, the PIC is a formal meeting which should be scheduled as soon as possible and practical after a large-scale complex or challenging incident. All responders that were involved in incident operations should attend. The meeting should be held in a central location in a facility large enough to accommodate everyone comfortably. The meeting should be should last long enough, two to three hours, to accomplish the attended goal of a focused discussion and review of the incident with a short break in the middle. Priority traffic, a radio message to the IC that contains critical information. Protect in place, a life-safety tactic of leaving people indirectly exposed to a fire compartment behind a barrier of protection while fire crews control and ventilate the fire area. Consider utilizing the vent, enter, isolate, search, VEIS tactic. Quick hit, an all-senses fire attack initiated by an exterior indirect hand line operation into the fire compartment in order to initiate cooling while transitioning into interior direct fire attack in coordination with ventilation operations. Radio discipline, assigned units only reporting status changes. Priority traffic and or mayday radio traffic messages when assigned to working positions. A no good news reporting system. Rapid intervention team, RIT, a designated crew of at least three or more firefighters standing by at an incident that may be called upon to rescue other firefighters who become trapped, lost, injured, or unaccounted for. Recycle, a timely and efficient means of air bottle replacement. Rehab, an assignment to a rehab location close to the emergency scene where units will be medically evaluated, rehydrated, and replenished. Risk management profile, RMP. The following RMP will be used at all times whenever a hazard zone exists. We will risk our lives a lot to save savable lives. We will risk our lives a little to save savable property. We will not risk our lives at all for lives or property that are already lost. Roof report, a report given to the IC after the unit has visually verified the roof condition, type, static load, fire barriers, and basic blueprint of the building. Critical information gathered such as attic involvement or eminent collapse should be reported as priority traffic. A company assigned to obtain a roof report shall not step onto the roof unless authorized by the IC. Section, for larger and or expanding incidents, an IC can expand the incident organization by assigning section level positions. These positions include logistics, planning, operations, finance, and admin. Section chief, manage one of the five functional sections of an incident organization. The section chief is assigned by the IC and reports directly to the IC. SOP, standard operating procedure. Status board, a piece of tactical level accountability hardware located on all apparatus near the officer seat that is used to store the passports or crews assigned to the hot zone. Status change, a radio message to the IC informing them of a benchmark or a unit requesting one of two things, to move from an assigned work location to a different location or to exit the structure to recycle or rehab. Still alarm, a one-unit response to a reported emergency. A still alarm is used to investigate a fire alarm, medical call, or assist the public, etc. Strategic decision-making model. This model confirms the decision-making process into a standard sequence. Number one, we identify the incidents critical factors. Number two, we apply those factors into a risk management profile. Number three, we decide the incidents strategy. Number four, we develop the IAP. Number five, we complete the incidents tactical priorities. Strategic level. The IC manages the strategic level with command and controls, deploying resources with task, location, and objective, TLO. Maintaining accountability in the hazard zones. Maintaining an accurate tactical worksheet and ensuring that TAN reports are delivered from tactical areas of the operation. Strategy. The overall operation mode of the incident. There are only two strategies. Offensive, inside, or defensive, outside. The IC determines the incidents strategy. Tactical level. This level of the incident organization is managed by DGSs. DGSs are responsible for accountability within their D's last D. Tactical priorities. Life safety, incident stabilization, property conservation, and customer stabilization. They represent the core of the IAP at any given point during incident operations. Tactical radio channel. A specific radio channel that units operating on an incident scene will use to communicate with each other. Tactical worksheet. An accountability worksheet the IC uses to track activities required to manage all responders assigned to the incident. Tail board. An informal critique that occurs upon completion of the incident and prior to units leaving the scene. This critique should be led by the IC focusing on continual improvement in the efficiency of operations by discussing why actions were taken, what went well, what should be sustained, and what needs improvement. Were there clear objectives? Were they communicated? How well did crews achieve those objectives? Task level. This level of the incident organization performs the actual work that solves the incident's problems. Tasks, location, and objectives. TLO. Whenever an IC or DSG assigns a unit inside of a hazard zone, they must give the unit their TLO with the assignment. 3D. A deployment model that provides the IC with a pool of workers to address the incident's tactical priorities. This model includes having working crews, on-deck crews, and staged crews. Timestamp. Elapsed time notification. When a working incident is declared, the dedicated dispatcher will begin elapsed time notifications over the tactical channel every 10 minutes until the incident is placed under control or until command requests to discontinue or restructure the timestamp. Under control. A benchmark given by the IC to dispatch when all tactical priorities have been addressed. Upgrade assignment. A resource determination available to the IC to upgrade the response from a 3-1-1 to a 4-2-2. Warm zone. Area just outside of the hot zone that may become contaminated or is in a collapse area. Personnel working in a warm zone must be in full PPE with their SCBA face piece readily available to quickly dug. Water on the fire. The benchmark given to indicate water is being applied to the main body of fire and has not been controlled. Work cycles. The expected operational period for a task level worker, which is normally two SCBA bottles depending on work conditions. When companies have reached to the end of their work cycle, rehab should be considered. Working fire. If fire conditions that require a hand line to be deployed to control the fire. U plus 2 concept. An expectation that the IC will size up the situation, assumes command, and prepares to deploy the next two level one units in support of the initial IAP objectives.