Configure Incident Command templates, checklists, and units

Understand the outcome

Templates, checklists, units, and preplans set what commanders see when a call starts.

Incident Command is a full-screen Command Portal for running a call. Start a blank incident or pick a recent Active911 dispatch, track units by assignment, run PAR roll calls on a timer, log benchmarks, hazards, and resource requests, and work from a map with hydrants and preplans. Every action is timestamped on the timeline and shared with other command screens within seconds. The Command Portal opens from the header on desktop-sized screens.

Before you begin

Make the decision before changing the screen. Record the current configuration when the department already uses this feature, and use a test record or test account when the change can affect active members.

• List your standing units and riding positions.
• Draft your tactical checklists; none are pre-built.
• Gather preplans for target hazards.

Where to work and what access you need

Start from the portal destination named in the procedure. Administrators normally need permission to view Incident Command plus the specific create, edit, manage, approve, report, or all-record action used by the task. Visibility alone does not grant management access.

• Command Portal/incident-command
• Incidents/modules/incident-command/incidents
• Checklists/modules/incident-command/checklists
• Templates/modules/incident-command/templates
• Units/modules/incident-command/units
• Assignments/modules/incident-command/assignments
• Benchmarks/modules/incident-command/benchmarks
• Preplans/modules/incident-command/preplans
• Settings/modules/incident-command/settings

Required foundation

• Core must be enabled and correctly configured before this workflow can operate reliably.

If your department uses custom roles, test the procedure with that role—not only with a full administrator account. This confirms the people responsible for daily operations can complete the workflow without receiving unrelated access.

Complete the task

1. Step 1Add units

   Open Units and add standing units and riding positions.

2. Step 2Review assignments and benchmarks

   Adjust the built-in assignments and benchmarks.

3. Step 3Build checklists

   Create tactical checklists with phases, critical items, and due times.

4. Step 4Create templates

   Attach checklists and size-up fields to incident types.

5. Step 5Add preplans

   Enter preplans so they appear on the map.

6. Step 6Set PAR and settings

   Confirm the PAR interval and other settings, then practice on a blank incident.

Operational safeguards

Apply these module-level controls while completing the procedure. They prevent a technically saved configuration from becoming an operational or access problem later.

• Control point
  Build your department’s tactical checklists; none are pre-built.
• Control point
  Set up standing units and riding positions before the first call.
• Control point
  Add preplans for target hazards.
• Control point
  Install Active911 in Integrations if you want the recent-call picker.
• Control point
  Practice on a blank incident before using it on a live call.
• Control point
  Use Incident Reporting for the NERIS report afterward.

Verify the result

Do not consider the setup complete merely because the save action succeeded. Confirm the behavior from the user-facing or operational view, then retain evidence of the test when department policy requires it.

• A practice incident loads the right template.
• Units appear for assignment.
• Preplans show on the map.

If any verification fails, return to the source configuration and correct it there. Do not edit a report or downstream record to conceal an incorrect setup.

Troubleshooting

No recent calls in the picker

Install and test Active911 in Integrations.

Checklist missing

Attach it to the template for that incident type.

Button missing on phone

The Command Portal launches only on larger screens.

Related Incident Command capabilities

This task sits inside a larger module workflow. These related capabilities may affect the result or provide the next administrative step:

• Command board with overview, checklists, objectives, benchmarks, and PAR on one screen
• PAR clock with a 5-minute default interval; MAYDAY and evacuation start a round automatically
• Emergency declarations: MAYDAY with LUNAR fields, evacuation, emergency traffic, and collapse
• Active911 picker with a suggested template and no duplicate boards for the same call
• Standing units, riding positions, 27 built-in assignments, and 12 benchmarks
• Map with command post, staging, hazards with radius, nearest hydrants, and matching preplans
• 14 ICS positions and resource requests tracked from requested to on scene
• Timestamped timeline, command transfer with briefing, and guided closeout

Use the module hub to open the dedicated procedure associated with any capability listed here.

Connected modules and downstream effects

A change here can alter what members see, what data appears in reports, or how another module completes its workflow. Review the connected areas below before making a department-wide change.

• IntegrationsWeather, news, Active911, PSTrax, WhenToWork, and in-house data sources.
• Incident ReportingGuided NERIS reports, CAD-started drafts, auditor review, and transmission.

After deployment, test one complete workflow from the originating module through every connected destination your department uses. Document the final configuration so another administrator can audit or reproduce it later.

Continue in Incident Command

Return to the Incident Command module guide for connected workflows, dependencies, portal destinations, and additional procedures.