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Incident Management and Emergency
Services
Environmental Scan and Benchmarking
1. What is "Incident Management"? In view of confusion of
terms within public safety, do we need to change the name? (Not a
trivial issue)
2. What is the current state-of-the-practice in the United States?
3. What do we think the state-of-the-art should be? We need to
redline this on a regular basis. Our understanding now is much
different than it was ten years ago. Also technology improvement will
change what is possible.
4. What is needed in terms of training, technical assistance,
outreach and awareness and research to bridge the gap between the
current state of the practice and the possible state of the art.
Incident Management is a planned and coordinated multi-agency
program to detect and remove traffic incidents and restore traffic
capacity as quickly and safely as possible. The major partners in an
incident management program are transportation agencies (state and
local), law enforcement agencies (state and local), fire departments,
emergency medical services, and the towing and recovery industry.
Other groups such as environmental and public health agencies are
involved occasionally, depending on the nature of the incident. The
provision of current and accurate traveler information is also
important for an incident management program.
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Issues
Regional and Statewide Incident Management Programs
Communications
Incident Detection
and Verification
Incident Response
Traffic
Management Strategies for Incidents
Incident Clearance
and Site Management
Emergency Services
Service Patrols
Special Events
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Regional and Statewide Incident
Management Programs
Since an incident management program involves so many different
entities, it is essential that a multi-year program plan be
developed and adopted by all participating partners to sustain the
program. The program plan defines the goals and objectives of the
program and the activities and responsibilities of each of the
partner in meeting the program’s goals. The program provides the
framework for on-going institutional cooperation and coordination of
activities among the partners to improve incident management related
efforts. It also provides the basis for making decisions in the
budgeting process at both the state and local levels.
Multi-Year Incident Management Program Plan
The development and implementation of a regional or statewide
multi-year program plan for incident management agreed to and
supported by all participating agencies and private sector partners.
Institutional Coordination
The development and fostering of understanding, coordination
and agreement among partners involved in the incident management
program. This coordination involves multi-agency planning, policies
and procedures, legislation, inter-agency agreements, and
coordinated training. It also involves high-level agreements
regarding communications procedures and the coordination and sharing
of incident related information among participating agencies and
private sector partners.
Performance
Monitoring, Analysis, Evaluation and Reporting
The process of collecting and evaluating data and other information
regarding the performance of the incident management program so that
progress toward achieving the programs goals can be measured and
feedback to administrative levels of the partnering agencies can be
made.
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Communications
The single most complex technical challenge in coordinating
multi-agency incident response is real-time communication and
sharing of voice, data and video information regarding the incident
(and the response) among the partners. This issue involves whom to
communicate with and when (an institutional protocol issue) and how
(an institutional and technical issue). It involves communications
early in the incident during verification and initial response and
communications at the incident site during clearance.
Information Sharing Issues for
Incident Management
The technical issues of providing for interagency sharing and
coordination of voice, data, and video information related to an
incident. This involves passage of all pertinent communications
including emergency call takers (PSAP’s), Computer Aided Dispatch
(CAD) Systems, radio and telephone media and emerging ITS
technologies such as Advanced Law Enforcement Response Technology
(ALERT).
Public Safety
Answering Points (PSAP’s)
Institutional and technical issues involved in routing calls,
calling numbers, private PSAP’s and Mayday systems
Computer Aided Dispatch (CAD)
Institutional and technical issues involved in sharing CAD-based
information from one agency with other partners including security
of data and media of transmission.
Advanced Law Enforcement Response Technology (ALERT)
The technology which enables the communication of voice,
data and video information among response vehicles and between
vehicles and a center.
Other Applications
for Sharing Incident Information
All other technical issues involved with passing voice,
data and video information about an incident and the response to
that incident among the responding partners. In the near future
these will involve Automated Collision Notification (ACN). The
communications issues will involve what kind of information is to
be transmitted and how it will be passed to emergency medical
responders.
Communications Issues in the
National ITS Architecture
ITS User Services and User Service Requirements and other
issues in the National ITS Architecture related to Incident
Management and Emergency Management will be raised in the standards
development process and during the ALERT project. As public safety
agencies are brought more fully into incident management programs,
emergency management architecture and standards issues will be
raised.
ITS Standards for Incident and Emergency
Management
Current status, development, testing and use of ITS Standards for
incident and emergency management, especially the Traffic Management
Data Dictionary (ITE) and the Incident Management Message Sets
(IEEE).
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Incident
Detection and Verification
Detection and verification of an incident are the first steps in
initiating the appropriate response to that incident. Detection is
simply finding out that something has happened. Verification is the
process of finding exactly where the incident is and as much about the
nature of the incident in order to respond effectively to it.
Detection Sources and Methods
Methods of detecting and verifying incidents including cellular
telephone, automated surveillance, video, first responder, call
boxes and fleet reporting. Issues in detection and verification
(accurate information, location techniques, call-taker training,
detection of shoulder incidents, and training of first responders.
Common understanding incident magnitude definitions and relative
threats to public safety
Algorithms for Incident Detection
Use of various algorithms for automated incident
detection systems, their relative advantages and disadvantages.
Emergency Notification Systems
Systems for notifying public safety responders of an incident or
emergency situation.
N11 Emergency
Telephone Systems (911, 311)
Use of emergency telephone systems for incident detection and
verification, including operation of the Public Safety Answering
Points (PSAP’s).
Mayday
Systems
Mayday Systems for in-vehicle emergency
notification including both automatic and operator activated
systems.
Hazmat
Detection and Verification
Special issues dealing with detection and verification of hazardous
materials incidents, including methods and technologies available to
assist in the identification and identify risks and special
precautions for various hazardous materials.
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Incident Response
Response is the activation of a planned strategy for safely and
rapidly deploying the most appropriate personnel and equipment
resources to the incident. It is based on procedures for initial
response before full verification and on procedures for full
response based on better and more accurate verification.
Major
Incident Response Plans
The development and use of multi-agency major incident response
plans which coordinate the planning, readiness and allocation of
personnel and equipment resources to an incident site. This includes
identification of resources possessed by each response party and
knowledge of resources of each party by other parties. This also
includes the development and maintenance of call-out lists,
emergency telephone numbers of essential personnel, location and
availability of special equipment often available from the private
sector (heavy-duty rotator cranes, etc.)
Major
Incident Response Teams
The organization and use of special teams made up of command-level
personnel in each agency which are on 24 hour call for major
incidents. Members of a major incident response team are high enough
in each agency to order additional personnel and equipment resources
to an incident scene from their agencies without requesting approval
from someone at a higher level. This topic also addresses special
coordination and communication needs for team members and the
operation of multiple teams across an entire region.
Multi-Agency Resource Planning
for Incidents
The coordination of administrative and response teams to
identify and allocate resources for response to various types of
incidents
Fleet Management
Techniques and technologies used to locate and identify vehicles
in a response agency’s fleet to better enable response to an
incident.
Towing and Recovery Issues
The towing and recovery industry is a major responding partner and,
unlike most other partners, is a private sector entity. Therefore,
towing and recovery issues involve not only the industry issues and
institutional relationships but contracting mechanisms to provide
the service at an incident.
Institutional Issues in Towing and Recovery
Issues faced by the towing and recovery industry in
responding to incidents including adequate reimbursement for time
and equipment usage, timely notification regarding the incident
and information about the nature of the incident, training and
certification issues, disposal issues, and involvement in a
multi-agency incident management process at the program and
response levels.
Towing
and Recovery Arrangements and Contracts
Towing and recovery arrangements and contracts
including rotation, rotation by response classification, rotation
within a geographic zone and contracted towing and recovery. Also
includes special contracting provisions for heavy equipment and
cranes.
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Traffic Management Strategies for Incidents
Incidents, even minor ones, usually cause some disruption in
traffic flow. Major incidents can effect travel in a corridor or
even throughout an entire urban area. Strategies are needed for
managing traffic at the scene of an incident and for managing travel
throughout a corridor or urban area for major incidents.
Operations Centers Role in
Incident Management
The role of a traffic operations center or a dispatch center
as a focal point for the management of information about an
incident and as an archive for incident and traffic information
for analysis and evaluation of incident management programs.
Traffic Control Plans
Strategies for traffic control both at the incident site and
in the corridor affected by the incident.
Alternate Route Plans
The development and implementation of alternate routes for
traffic diversion during a major and lengthy closure of traffic
lanes due to an incident and the criteria under which the
alternate routes are used. This involves providing the equipment
and personnel to set up and maintain the alternate route and to
remove it in a logical manner. Development of alternate routes
involves discussions and agreements with local officials and
assessments of the traffic capacity and physical restrictions on
the alternate routes. It may involve a special plan for
accommodating heavy trucks.
Traveler Information for Incident Management
The provision of information to travelers, both those in
transit and those who have not yet begun their trip. Involves the
knowledge of specific information about an incident which is
useful to travelers to avoid the incident or to be prepared to
encounter the congestion arising from the incident. This is a
specialized subset of traveler information. The information needed
to deal with incidents has its own unique characteristics.
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Incident Clearance and Site Management
Clearance is the quick and safe removal of vehicles, debris or
spilled material to restore a facility to its full traffic capacity.
Incident clearance is achieved through the coordinated management of
activities and resources at and near the incident site.
Incident Command Systems
The formal command and control process initially
developed by the fire services in the early 1970's and now used by
most public safety agencies to manage the activities and resources
of multiple responding agencies, particularly for major incidents.
Crash Investigation Issues
The technical and institutional issues regarding the
on-site investigation of crashes. The issues include methods
(tape, total station, photogrammetry, etc.), motor carrier
investigations, necessity of lane closures and preservation and
protection of evidence for crime scenes. Crash investigations,
particularly for fatal crashes are frequently the most time
consuming of all incident response and clearance activities.
Quick
Clearance Policies
Those multi-agency policies which provide for measures
pushing or dragging damaged vehicles and their contents off the
travel lanes of a highway to a safer location. The development of
quick clearance policies will almost always involve confronting
liability issues.
Logistical
Issues
Issues dealing with the staging of resources at and
near the incident scene and the parking of response vehicles to
facilitate lane openings during the clearance process.
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Emergency Services
There are a host of institutional and technical issues related to
emergency services which are not covered under other topics but
still must be considered and included in a multi-agency incident
management program. These include law enforcement, fire and
emergency medical issues and relationships with other agencies which
provide emergency services. These may include environmental, public
health and agriculture agencies.
Traffic Condition Information to Emergency Services
Emergency services agencies are reluctant to request
traffic or facility condition formation for a number of reasons.
Yet transportation agencies often have this information which is
of value to emergency services for their response. There are both
institutional and technical issues involved in providing this type
of information to emergency services agencies.
Signal
Preemption
Preemption of traffic signals, particularly to fire and
emergency medical agencies can provide safer and quicker response
to an incident. Both the institutional and technical aspects of
traffic signal preemption for emergency services need to be
addressed.
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Service Patrols
Service patrols, in the most general definition, provide two
distinct services - motorist assistance and incident response. The
equipment and training needed to provide these two services is
different. However, a service patrol, properly equipped and trained
can provide both.
General Service Patrol
Issues
Issues involving the services to be provided - motorist
assist or incident response (or both) and the resources and
training needed to provide the service.
Publicly Operated
Service Patrols
Special issues related to the operation of service
patrols by public agencies including personnel, training,
equipment, definition of objectives and task, and relationship
with the towing and recovery industry.
Privately Operated
Service Patrols
Special Issues dealing with contracted operation of
service patrols including type of contract, contract
administration, and definition of objectives of the service
patrol.
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Special Events
Special events are a unique type of incident in that their
occurrence is known in advanced and the special handling they will
require can be planned for and resources dedicated ahead of time.
Construction and maintenance activities are the most common of these
special events, but major sporting events, fairs and festivals and
parades also fall into this category.
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Sources of Information
Incident Management Workshop (NHI 13348)
This is an on-going workshop presented about twice per month at
various sites around the country. The attendees are from state and
local law enforcement, state and local transportation, fire,
emergency medical, towing and recovery, traffic information media,
emergency communications, environmental and other emergency
management agencies and organizations. The purpose of the workshops
is to identify and discuss local issues in incident management from
the viewpoints of a number of different agencies and disciplines and
to identify possible courses of action to deal with the issues. The
NHI has contracted with PB Farradyne for presenting the workshop.
There is an opportunity to document the finding of past workshops
and future workshops as they happen. This is currently not in the
scope of the NHI contract.
Key Issues and Practices Series (KIPS)
The Traffic Incident Management Committee of the ITE ITS Council
has proposed a KIPS series of workshops and/or seminars to deal with
key issues and practices within incident management. These workshops
will be similar to an incident management workshop has been
scheduled for Dallas, TX on September 15-16, 1999. The Dallas
workshop is part of the NHI series and is not formally part of the
KIPS workshops. However, it is intended to explore and discuss a
wide range on incident management issues along with presentation of
some of the NHI workshop modules.
National Incident Management Coalition (NIMC)
The NIMC sponsored a series of workshops in major urban areas
beginning in 1992. The workshops were one-day long and attended by
upper level management of local agencies and elected public
officials. The initial goal of the NIMC workshops was one of
outreach and awareness of incident management for decision-makers.
More recently, the activities of the NIMC have focused on
middle-sized urban areas and on statewide programs. A new FY99
contract ($50,000) will allow to NIMC to do 4 or 5 new conferences
focusing on statewide programs.
Logistical support for the work of the NIMC is provided by the
American Trucking Association Foundation. In 1990, the ATAF
contracted with Cambridge Systematics to produce a state of the
practice report on incident Management. In 1995, the ATAF started
revision of the 1990 report by forming expert focus groups which met
in Washington, DC and Salt Lake City to discuss the current state of
practice and the content of the revised document. The final version
of the new report on Incident Management was published in February
of 1997. With this experience, the ATAF is well suited to again form
a current panel of nationally known experts to discuss the 1999-2000
state of the practice, to discuss goals for incident management
programs and to identify needs to reach to goals.
ITS Deployment Tracking
In 1997 ITS Deployment Tracking Surveys for Incident (Freeway and
Arterial) Management were sent to various officials in the largest
urban areas of the country. In addition an Incident Management
addendum dealing primarily with institutional issues was included.
Both the ITS IM survey and the addendum were revised slightly and
sent out with the 1999 tracking effort. These survey results will be
analyzed for quantitative and qualitative information about incident
management programs. In some cases, comparison of 1997 and 1999
surveys from the same agency will provide information about progress
and trends. Some of the incident management information will also be
included in the Emergency Management survey.
IEEE Incident Management Working Group (IMWG)
The IMWG is developing a family of ITS standards (IEEE-P1512) for
incident management message sets for emergency management
applications. The goal of the IMWG is to develop standards which
will be useful to and not duplicative of already existing standards
in public safety. In order to accomplish this task, the IMWG is
attempting to involve a wider range of participants in the standards
process from public safety. The IMWG has sponsored workshops to
address the multi-agency communications issues and is scheduling a
workshop in November to do a table-top exercise of the base P1512
standard. An additional workshop should be held to discuss a wider
range of standards issues within public safety - most importantly
how to engage existing public safety communications standards
(message sets, data structures and elements) within the ITS
standards to obtain wider user and applicability of ITS standards by
public safety.
Advanced Law Enforcement Response Technology (ALERT)
The ALERT vehicle is a mobile communications platform to permit
the transfer of voice, image, and data among incident responders and
between the incident site and a remote site (operations center). The
ALERT technology has been developed through extensive field testing
of police vehicles in actual use. The technology is now ready for
transport to other types of vehicles such as fire and rescue and
service patrols. An operational test of ALERT will start soon on the
Capital Beltway in Washington, DC. This test will highlight
operational issues with multi-agency communications, both on-site
and off-site, and will have architecture and standards implications
for ITS. It is the first real field test of ITS technologies with a
direct bearing on incident management and communications among
public safety and transportation agencies. The ALERT program bears
close monitoring in a continuing scanning process for new issues
will be raised during the field test.
Other Professional Groups for Coordination
-
Transportation
Research Board Committees - A3A09-Freeway Operations,
A3B09-Traffic Law Enforcement, A3A18- Traffic Signal Systems,
A4002-Tort Liability and Risk Management
-
ITS America
Committees - Emergency Services, Advanced Transportation
Management Systems, Advanced Traveler Information Systems
-
National Emergency
Numbers Association (NENA)
-
International
Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP)
-
International
Association of Fire Chiefs
-
Association of
Public Safety Communications Officials (APCO)
-
National Highway
Traffic Safety Administration
-
ComCare Alliance
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