Who generally facilitates the Operational Period Brief?

The Operational Period Brief is typically facilitated by the Planning Section Chief. This individual is responsible for ensuring that all operational periods are clearly defined and coordinated with the ongoing incident management activities. The Planning Section Chief prepares the incident action plan (IAP), articulating the objectives, strategies, and tactics for the upcoming operational period.

During the Operational Period Brief, the Planning Section Chief not only shares the plan with all personnel involved but also provides crucial information regarding resource status, changes in the incident, and safety considerations. This role is central to maintaining situational awareness and the effective coordination of multi-agency response efforts, which is essential for the overall success of the incident management process.

Other roles, such as the Incident Commander or the Operations Section Chief, may be involved in the briefing but do not typically facilitate it. The Incident Commander leads the overall incident response, while the Operations Section Chief executes the strategies outlined in the plan, thus making the Planning Section Chief the most appropriate facilitator for this brief.