Centralized, coordinated incident
action planning should guide all
response activities for emergencies
as well as pre-planned events. An
Incident Action Plan (IAP) provides
a concise and coherent means of
capturing and communicating the
overall incident priorities,
objectives, and strategies in the
contexts of both operational and
support activities.
Though a series of standard forms
and supporting documents, IAPs
provide clear objectives and actions
(for a given operation period) that
can serve as a basis for measuring
work and cost effectiveness, as well
as documentation for post-incident
fiscal and legal activities.
Every
incident must have an action plan.
However, not all incidents require
written plans. The need for written
plans and attachments is based on
the requirements of the incident and
the decision of the Incident
Commander (IC) or Unified Command (UC).
Most initial response operations are
not captured with a formal IAP.
However, if an incident is likely to
extend beyond one operational
period, become more complex, or
involve multiple jurisdictions
and/or agencies, preparing a written
IAP will become increasingly
important to maintain effective,
efficient, and safe operations.
Written IAPs must be
considered when:
-
Two or more
jurisdictions are dedicated
to a response,
-
The incident
continues into the next
operational period, or
-
A HAZMAT
incident is involved.
