Role of an Interim Commander

The main information required from the interim Commander could be primarily obtained by considering the acronym ‘METHANE’ (Hodgetts 2002, p.27). Through this acronym one may communicate to gather such information as: the fact the interim Commander has already ‘declared’ a major incident or placed it on ‘standby.’ The exact location of the incident should be obtained, such as a grid reference or the crossroad names. The type of incident, such as a ‘bus crash’ should be determined. The hazards that are involved and present in the incident, such as broken glass, possible fuel leakage, traffic hazards, possible electrical 240 volt inverters still active on the bus, biohazards, such as blood and sewage, and debris should be communicated, and whether or not they are easily removed or have to be worked around should be noted. Potential hazards such as fuel on the road may potentially become a serious hazard. The access and egress to the casualties involved in the incident should be communicated. Likewise, the number of casualties should be stated, including an idea of how injured the majority are, because a bus full of priority three casualties (walking) will require different resources to a bus full of priority one casualties (immediate medical attention). Lastly, the emergency services required and those that are already en-route should be determined.