Who coordinates with local authorities and emergency services during a large-scale incident?

• A. The Airport Security Chief
• B. The Finance Manager
• C. The Communications Director
• D. The Incident Commander with liaison from the EOC and Public Information Officer as needed

Answer: (D)

In a large-scale incident, on-scene operations are managed through the Incident Command System, and the person in charge on the ground is the Incident Commander. The Incident Commander is responsible for coordinating with local authorities and emergency services, ensuring that all responding agencies work together smoothly.

To make that coordination effective, the Incident Commander works with a liaison from the Emergency Operations Center (EOC). The EOC liaison connects on-scene actions with broader agency plans, resources, and policy guidance, helping align multiple agencies and keep everyone informed. When public messaging is needed, a Public Information Officer is brought in to handle communications, so information released to the public and media is accurate and consistent.

This arrangement—Incident Commander directing operations with EOC liaison support and Public Information Officer input as needed—best supports coordinated response across agencies, avoids conflicting actions, and ensures resource requests and information flow are properly managed. The other roles are important, but they don’t sit in the same capacity for coordinating across multiple authorities during a large incident.