As fire season rages on, incident management teams and their types often come up in our reports. An incident, as defined by FEMA, is “an occurrence or event, natural or human-caused, that requires an emergency response to protect life or property.”
An incident management team (IMT) is a group of highly-trained men and women who respond to these emergencies. In Rio Blanco County, this is generally a wildfire, but IMTs can also respond to other natural disasters like floods or hurricanes or human-caused events.
To learn about a day in the life of an IMT, please visit: https://www.theheraldtimes.com/adayinthelifeofanimtfirefighter/meeker/
The more serious or complex an incident (or incidents), the more resources are called in to assist local and regional crews already working hard on the front lines. As there are only 32 Type 2 teams and 16 Type 1 teams in the US, difficult decisions are sometimes made to determine exactly where the IMTs are needed most.
At this time, a Type 2 IMT, the Southwest Area Incident Management Team 5, is headquartered at Meeker High School and Barone Middle School to assist in firefighting efforts on the Indian Valley and Sulphur Fires.
Here’s the breakdown on the different types of IMTs and their definitions:
5typesofIMTs-HT
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