Institute for Crisis, Disaster, and Risk Management

Crisis and Emergency Management

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January  2004                                                         Volume 5 - Number 4

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National Incident Management System

By Larry Stemberger

On February 28, 2003 Presidential Directive # 5 (HSPD-5) called for the secretary of Homeland Security to establish a single

 national all hazards incident management system, the National Incident Management System (NIMS). The NIMS is to support

 the Initial National Response Plan (INRP) and to include procedures for multiple levels including local, state, and federal

actions for all phases of emergency management; mitigation/prevention, preparation, response, and recovery. The Secretary

(Secretary of Homeland Security) is responsible for coordinating these phases with the Federal Government when another

Federal department, state, or local authorities have requested assistance, when multiple federal agencies are substantially

involved, or when the President directs the Secretary of Homeland Security to manage an incident. The Secretary also has the

responsibility to ensure that appropriate information is released to all the involved departments as well as to the public and

private sectors. The management structure is not to prohibit the duties of the federal, state, local, private, or non-government

organizations (NGO) entities, rather it is to provide interoperability among different departments and agencies in the system by

setting national standards. The Secretary should work with all involved incident participants to establish an effective plan as well

 as with the Department of Defense, Secretary of State, National Security Affairs, and the Attorney General, who has the lead

for criminal investigations. All these departments are suppose to cooperate since the NIMS is to be inter-operable and

compatible across all levels. Initially it was to be developed without influence from other management structures including the

existing incident management system (ICS). After experiencing difficulty establishing an approved effective system it was

decided to officially make the National Interagency Incident Management System (NIIMS) the basis for the NIMS. The

NIIMS is the management system used by the forest service. Modifications to the NIIMS will be made to establish the NIMS

as an all level, all hazards approach rather than just a fire hazard approach.

The NIIMS is a total systems approach refined through past experiences in response to emergency situations and contains five distinguishable parts: 1) Incident Command System (ICS, also can be considered The Incident Management System IMS. This is the on-scene incident management structure to maximize response efforts. The remaining parts of the ICS are important in supporting the actual response structure.), 2) Training, 3) Qualifications and Certifications (This includes national standards which would accomplish the requirement to be inter-operable and compatible across all levels), 4) Publications Management, and 5) Supporting Technology. The ICS procedures are a guide for emergency management entities to establish an effective incident action plan for multiple scenarios. The ICS is also established so that it adapts to advances in technology. There are 8 components and 5 functional areas within ICS. The components are 1) Common Terminology, 2) Modular Organization, 3) Integrated Communications, 4) Unified Command, 5) Consolidated Action Plans, 6) Manageable Span-of-Control, 7) Pre-Designated Incident Facility, and 8) Comprehensive Resource Management. The functional areas are 1) Command, 2) Operations, 3) Planning, 4) Logistics, and 5) Finance. As a whole the existing NIIMS accomplishes many of the requirements for the NIMS, which is why it officially is to be the basis of the NIMS. Modifications need to be made to the system to be an all level all hazards approach so it can be named the National Incident Management System.

Acronyms

HSPD-5 – Homeland Security Presidential Directive # 5

ICS – Incident Command System

IMS – Incident Management System

INRP – Initial Response Plan

NGO – Non-government Organization

NIIMS – National Interagency Incident Management System

NIMS – National Incident Management System

References

United States Department of Homeland Security. ”Press Room,” October, 10 2003

[online], http://www.dhs.gov/dhspublic/interapp/press_release/press_release_0278.xml.

United States Department of Homeland Security. ”Press Room,” February, 08 2003 [online], http://www.dhs.gov/dhspublic/display?theme=42&content=496.

United States Department of Agricultural Forest Service. “National Interagency Incident Management System,” December 2003 [online], http://www.fs.fed.us/fire/operations/niims.shtml.

Virginia Department of Fire Programs. “National Interagency Incident Management System – Virginia,” December 2003 [online], http://www.vdfp.state.va.us/niims.htm.

International Association of Fire Chiefs. “President Creates National Incident Management System,” December 2003 [online], http://www.iafc.org/onscene/june15/morenews4.htm.

National Inter-Agency Incident Management System (NIIMS). “Operational System Description,” December 2003 [online], http://www.appc1.va.gov/emshg/apps/kml/docs/NIIMS_ICS_OperationalSysDesc.pdf.