NWCG Glossary of Wildland Fire, PMS 205

The incident management organization for the incident.

A group of ICS-qualified personnel consisting of an Incident Commander, Command and General Staff, and personnel assigned to other key ICS positions.

An incident-based program to care for emergent and minor medical as well as common occupational health care problems of incident personnel. This program may be deployed to Type I and Type II incidents. Currently, this program is only available in three regions: Northwest (R6), Northern Rockies (R1) and Alaska (R10). In Alaska, the program is known as the Alaska Fire Medic Program.

The name assigned to an incident.

A statement of an outcome to be accomplished or achieved. Incident objectives are used to select strategies and tactics. Incident objectives should be realistic, achievable, and measurable, yet flexible enough to allow strategic and tactical alternatives.

The number assigned to an incident. This number follows a standard format where the first two letters indicate the state, the next letters are the incident agency, and the last six digits are agency assigned.

Resources, together with a complement of overhead personnel, calculated to be sufficient to provide fire efficient incident management.

All supervisory positions described in the Incident Command System.

All individuals assigned to an incident or in support of an incident, whether on scene or off scene.

The total number of deaths, connected with the performance of work duties, that occurred in conjunction with an incident.

Total number of reportable occupational injuries and illnesses, which resulted in lost work days, that occurred in conjunction with an incident. Also includes cases without lost work days which result in transfer to another job, termination of employment, or required medical treatment (other than first aid); or which involved loss of consciousness, or restriction of work or motion. (First aid and lost work days are further defined under OSHA Part 1904.)

Incident Position standards are a component of NWCG standards. They enable consistent and uniform performance by personnel mobilized by position under NIMS-ICS principles. Incident position standards include incident position descriptions (duties and responsibilities) and position qualification requirements for training, experience, physical fitness, and position currency.

A card issued to persons showing their incident management and trainee qualifications to fill specified fire management positions in an incident management organization.

General descriptive location of the incident as it relates to an identifiable town or population center. In the case of a Complex, this may describe 1) one of the points of origin of one of the member or “child” incidents, or 2) a center or other representative point that related to the group of incidents.

Refers to type 1 (national interagency support cache), type 2 (national interagency support cache satellite), and type 3 (local interagency support cache). Caches may consist of a pre-determined complement of tools, equipment and/or supplies stored in a designated location, available for incident use.

Includes any off-incident support provided to an incident. Examples would be agency dispatch centers, airports, mobilization centers, etc.

The type of incident for which a resource is qualified to perform in a position.

A special weather forecast for a specific incident prepared by a meteorologist on site at or near the incident area.

Wildland fire-related mishap that results in serious or non-serious injuries involving multiple personnel, near accident (which would have resulted in a serious injury or fatality), or substantial loss of property (less than $250,000). The mishap may be so complex and fraught with operational discrepancies that it has the potential to produce an accident, serious injury, or fatality given a similar environment or set of circumstances that existed at the time of the incident. 

Increasing coupling used on hose, pump, or nozzles to permit connection of a larger size of hose.

Any resource or grouping of resources on which individual status is maintained.

Airtanker drop in which tank doors are opened in sequence so that fire retardant cascades somewhat continuously.

Fire suppression activities by other than regular fire suppression organizations or a fire cooperator.

A fire that advances in the tree crowns alone, not requiring any energy from the surface fire to sustain combustion or movement.

The speed of an aircraft as shown on its pitot static airspeed indicator. Calibrated to reflect standard atmosphere adiabatic compressible flow at sea level, uncorrected for airspeed system errors.

Visual remains at a fire scene revealing the fire's progress and action.

Classification of indicators into a variety of categories based on how they are formed and the types of material they are found on.

A method of suppression in which the control line is located some considerable distance away from the fire's active edge. Generally done in the case of a fast-spreading or high-intensity fire and to utilize natural or constructed firebreaks or fuel breaks and favorable breaks in the topography. The intervening fuel is usually backfired; but occasionally the main fire is allowed to burn to the line, depending on conditions. 

A control mechanism that allows a regulated quantity of foam concentrate to be introduced into the main hose line.

An application of fire danger rating to support regulation of contractors involved in land management activities for fire prevention purposes in the Pacific Northwest.

A heat detection system used for fire detection, mapping, and hotspot identification.

A capability through the use of a special mobile ground station to receive air-to-ground IR imagery at an incident.

Process of extinguishing fire by the use of an agent that interrupts the chemical reactions in the combustion process.

Any agent which retards a chemical reaction.

An aggressive action to put the fire out by the first resources to arrive, consistent with firefighter and public safety and values to be protected.

Specially trained and equipped fire crew for initial attack on a fire.

Fire that is generally contained by the attack units first dispatched, without a significant augmentation of reinforcements, within two hours after initial attack, and full control is expected within the first burning period.

The incident commander at the time the first attack forces commence suppression work on a fire.

The fire strategy initially used on a wildland fire. The initial fire strategy is the general plan or direction utilized until it succeeds or changes. The NWCG glossary defines strategy as: The general plan or direction selected to accomplish incident objectives.

Indicates whether the objectives for the initial fire strategy were attained. NWCG glossary defines strategy as: The general plan or direction selected to accomplish incident objectives

The area where investigator(s) begin their on-scene search for the general origin area.

The location coordinate for the latitude value corresponding to the initial reported point of origin specified in decimal degrees.

The location coordinate for the longitude value corresponding to the initial reported point of origin specified in decimal degrees.

The initial decisions and actions taken in reaction to a reported incident.

The total number of fire resources by kind, category, and type (if listed and applicable) used during the initial response. Initial response resouces will only be counted during intial attack. Extended Attack Incidents are those which persist beyond the first full operational period where local resources are not sufficient and the complexity elevates beyond initial attack commander capability.