Pelham 2nd Alarm

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The Incident Commander doesn't always have to be the most senior or even most knowledgeable person on a scene. In many cases an incident command is established and being managed at a scene by the first arriving qualified responder, often someone other than a Chief. And then just because the Chief or other senior member arrives that alone doesn't necessarily require an automatic transfer of command.

Many incidents turn out to only require a minimum level of response, and the Chief or other "senior" arriving individual can always elect to maintain the existing command structure without necessarily assuming the white hat, provided the incident is either under control or not expected to escalate further.