In incident management, who is tasked with communicating with the public and media and providing incident-related information to appropriate agencies?

• A. Incident Commander
• B. Public Information Officer
• C. Public Affairs Officer
• D. Liaison Officer

Answer: (B)

The key role here is the one that serves as the official link to the outside world, handling what gets said to the public and the media and ensuring that incident information is shared with the right agencies. This person, the Public Information Officer, coordinates all public communications—press briefings, situation updates, safety messages, and releases—so information is accurate, timely, and consistent with incident objectives. They work with the Incident Commander to align messages and with other agencies to distribute information appropriately. The Incident Commander leads the response operations, while the Liaison Officer focuses on coordinating with other agencies' representatives, and while Public Affairs may be used in some contexts, the formal ICS role for public information is the Public Information Officer.