"The Incident Command System (ICS) is recognized as an effective system for managing emergencies. Several States have adopted ICS as their standard for emergency management, and others are considering adopting ICS. As ICS gains wider use, there is a need to provide training for those who are not first responders (i.e., law enforcement, fire, or emergency medical services personnel) who may be called upon to function in an ICS environment. This Basic Incident Command System (ICS) Course will begin to meet that need. This course will provide an introduction to the concepts and principles of ICS. The Basic ICS Course has been developed as self-instruction but also can be delivered, with the use of an instructor, in a classroom. As such, the course includes a large number of scenarios, examples, and opportunities for students to apply what they have learned, whether through self-instruction or in the classroom."
This course contains five units:
Unit 1, Introduction to the Incident Command System, begins with a brief history of ICS, describes the ICS organization and each of the ICS functions and its responsibilities during an incident, identifies the main ICS concepts and principles, and identifies the need for an organized approach to managing emergency incidents.
Unit 2, The Incident Command System Organization, uses a scenario to illustrate how the ICS organization expands as an incident becomes more complex—and contracts as an incident contracts.
Unit 3, Incident Facilities, uses a scenario to show how the Incident Commander determines which facilities to activate and the criteria for selecting a location.
Unit 4, Incident Resource Management, describes why resource management is critical to incident operations and identifies the main resource categories that you may encounter at an incident.
Unit 5, Incident Command System Assignments, describes the activities that you should take to prepare for deployment, check in, perform in an ICS environment, and check out from an incident. This is the complete course manual made available by FEMA as part of the Emergency Management Institute Independent Study program, described this way by FEMA:
FEMA’s Independent Study Program is one of the delivery channels that the Emergency Management Institute (EMI) uses to provide training to the general public and specific audiences. Within the Department of Homeland Security, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, United States Fire Administration, operates the Emergency Management Institute (EMI). EMI produces independent study courses to train the general public as well as specific target audiences. The EMI Independent Study program consists of self-paced courses designed for people who have emergency management responsibilities and the general public. . .and college credit can be obtained through a for-fee service. Each Independent Study Course includes lessons with practice exercises and a final examination. Students who score 75 percent or better are issued a certificate of achievement from EMI. Course completion times vary from two to fourteen hours, depending on the course and the student’s background.
