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Evacuation and Shelter-in-Place Training > Incident Commanders
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KEY POINT

Black checkmarkICs must know how to establish effective collaboration and communication with elected officials regarding evacuation and SIP orders.

A 2010 survey of Cuyahoga County mayors and city managers indicated that some believe that they can issue an evacuation or SIP order. Fire chiefs and police chiefs were asked a similar question during a focus group, with fire chiefs believing that they had the authority and responsibility.

These responses reveal a need for a clear understanding of decision making authority among safety directors, elected officials and ICs and suggest that there could be conflict during a major incident. This conflict should be avoided by clearly defining authority before an incident, through local legislation if necessary.

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