Incident Automation

Product

Decision SupportResource Management & Record KeepingLive Operational Picture
How it works Documentation About

Where a position comes from, and what an IWI does

How does a crew’s location reach the map, and what changes when somebody is hurt?

Crews report where they are in whatever way works where they are: a text in their own words, a location pin, a text message, a satellite tracker, a phone that shares its location, or a radio call that Comms enters. Every report lands on one record per resource that shows where it came from and how old it is, and that record feeds every map, list and outside system. A call for help turns the same picture into an incident within an incident, with its own shared report, its own alerts and its own entries in the log.

  1. How the field reports

    • A text in their own words A crew says where they are, the way they would say it on the radio. The system picks out the location, and when it cannot tell whether they have arrived or are still on the way, it says so rather than guessing. Feeds: Messages, checked on arrival, A check that nothing has gone quiet, A call for help (declared).
    • A location pin A pin dropped in the group chat. It shows where they were at that moment, so every screen shows how old it is. Feeds: Messages, checked on arrival, A check that nothing has gone quiet.
    • A text message For anyone not in the group chat, a plain text message works the same way. It is accepted only from a number that belongs to a known person on the incident. Feeds: Messages, checked on arrival, A check that nothing has gone quiet.
    • A satellite tracker For places with no cell signal at all. The tracker reports where it is, and its HELP button starts an emergency response. Feeds: A check that nothing has gone quiet, A call for help (HELP).
    • A phone sharing its location Offered on every incident, and easy to turn off. When an assignment ends, the phone stops sharing before its access is removed, so nobody is tracked after they leave. Feeds: Locations from phones.
    • A radio call Comms enters What came over the radio or the phone, entered by the person listening. Crews in the field never have to update the system themselves. Feeds: The resource’s location, What they said they are doing.

  2. How it arrives

    • Messages, checked on arrival A text or pin is accepted only from the incident’s own group or a known number, so a stranger cannot put a false location on the map. Feeds: The resource’s location, What they said they are doing.
    • A check that nothing has gone quiet If messages stop arriving, the system notices and catches up, rather than assuming the field has nothing to say. Feeds: The resource’s location, What they said they are doing.
    • Locations from phones A phone that was out of signal sends the locations it saved once it reconnects, so the crew’s real path is filled in rather than lost. Feeds: The resource’s location.
    • A call for help The HELP button on a tracker, or somebody saying it in the group, such as “green IWI at DP 69”. The color can be stated in the message itself. Feeds: The incident within an incident.

  3. What it becomes

    • The resource’s location One record per resource that shows where its location came from and how old it is. An old location is shown as old, never as current. Feeds: The C&G/Safety map, The tracking view, Field accountability, Sharing with other maps, The ICS-214.
    • What they said they are doing Off the line, at the drop point, out of service. An update from a device moves the location but never overwrites what a person said. Feeds: The C&G/Safety map, Field accountability, Sharing with other maps.
    • The incident within an incident Red by default, yellow or green when declared. The color matters: it tells Command and General staff whether to gather at the C&G/Safety map or follow along on their phones. Feeds: The C&G/Safety map, The shared Medical Incident Report, The alerts that go out, The ICS-214.

  4. Who sees it

    • The C&G/Safety map Read-only for the people it is for: Command and General staff gather around it during a yellow or red IWI, and follow a green one on their phones. Changing anything on it requires signing in.
    • The tracking view Every tracked resource with how long ago it last reported, and the devices and trackers behind them.
    • Field accountability Who has reported recently and who has not, so somebody notices the crew that has gone quiet.
    • Sharing with other maps Other mapping systems, such as a common operating picture or Google Earth, can show the same resources, each with its source and age rather than a bare dot.
    • The shared Medical Incident Report Filled in on screen by whoever is listening to the radio, and shared by everyone following the response. It is a working tool for the response, not a document that gets printed or filed.
    • The alerts that go out An announcement in the group and a notification to the people who need it. The link it carries is read-only and expires within a day.
    • The ICS-214 The declaration, the messages sent while it is active, and movement are logged. Ordinary chatter is not: what goes on the official record is a deliberate choice.