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October 28, 2003
NASA Funded Earth Alert System to Aid MEMA in Disasters
The Maryland Emergency Management Agency (MEMA) has recently deployed
a new communications system, based on NASA technology, that is designed
to aid emergency management professionals when natural or man-made disasters
occur.
During the early hours of Hurricane Isabel, key Maryland Emergency Management
officials had access to Earth Alert, a system that enabled MEMA to quickly
view personnel deployment and status on a map, track personnel movement,
send text alerts as well as send messages to and from devices in the
field. They were also able to report damages and coordinate response
teams operating in the field. All these capabilities enabled MEMA to
more efficiently provide relief to those in need.
MEMA is the state agency within the State of Maryland charged with the
responsibility of reducing loss of life and property and protecting Maryland’s
institutions from natural and man-made disasters. The agency accomplishes
this by coordinating the use of state resources during emergencies and
disasters.
During a one-year pilot program, MEMA officials are testing the Earth
Alert Emergency Management System, which was developed by 3e Technologies
International (3eTI), Rockville, Md., and funded by NASA Goddard Space
Flight Center’s Technology Commercialization Office. As described by
3eTI, the Earth Alert System is a multi-faceted solution for Emergency
Management Agencies/Organizations and First Responder communities.
This new system is another success story in NASA’s Technology Transfer
Program, whose major goal is to transfer technology derived from its
space activities to the public and private sectors for the benefit of
humankind. The development of the Earth Alert System is based on NASA
Goddard’s communications and information systems technologies.
“We have worked closely with 3eTi to help develop and implement a system
that will enhance capabilities within the emergency management community.
This one-year testing phase will allow us to provide feedback to the
developers, and truly test its functionality,” stated Clint Pipkin from
MEMA’s Readiness Division/Recovery Branch at Camp Fretterd Military Reservation
located in Reisterstown, Md. “The system is now being used to provide
logistic support at designated relief locations for MEMA Disaster Recovery
Center personnel in areas hit hard by Hurricane Isabel.”
Because Earth Alert is a hosted Web-based solution, it can be implemented
without buying expensive call center infrastructure, networked computer
servers, or special hardware for field deployment. It uses commercially
available GPS-enabled wireless phones, off-the-shelf PCs and standard
web browsers. During this one-year implementation phase, MEMA will test
the system with 10 hand-held units and will provide valuable feedback
that will allow 3eTI to customize the software to meet the unique requirements
of emergency management personnel in Maryland.
The Disaster Recovery Center personnel at relief centers such as Annapolis,
and Baltimore, are using a total of 10 Earth Alert units on a day-to-day
basis. MEMA is using the Earth Alert system to locate the nearest Emergency
Operations Center (EOC) Watch personnel on a map and to obtain their
current status. This helps MEMA speed up response times and manage assets.
The MEMA EOC can send standard messages and alert messages to the units
in the field, and can receive messages from the units with location data.
Because of this capability MEMA can keep a log of critical messages
and display the messages on a map for better a better understanding of
the situation. MEMA is exploring many of the capabilities for further
use such as Damage Assessment and First Responder reporting. These capabilities
would aide relief efforts because they enable faster reporting and the
ability to speed up relief to hard hit areas. These capabilities will
require a more wide spread deployment and cooperation with local agencies.
MEMA can track personnel status through continuous map positioning,
and shadow the progress of critical events through real-time management
of personnel. These capabilities enhance personnel management, enable
faster incident response time, and can mitigate incidents before they
arise. With Earth Alert System capabilities, MEMA is now able to send
situation alerts and weather alerts directly to field personnel based
on their location or profile allowing the closest and best-equipped individuals
to be directly routed to critical situations faster.
A successful beta test of the Earth Alert System during the January
2003 inauguration parade of Governor Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. sparked MEMA’s
decision to implement the system from June 2003 to May 2004. MEMA provided
their parade staff with GPS-enabled Nextel two-way radios that allowed
them to keep the parade on schedule and to monitor the crowd for suspicious
behavior.
NASA initially conceived, sponsored and co-developed the first prototype
of the warning system to broadcast survival information to isolated populations
and then extended the original system to include the U.S. weather and
communications satellite systems. From its Office of Commercial Programs,
NASA provided funds for the Earth Alert System through the Small Business
Innovation Research Program.
The Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and the Small Business
Technology Transfer (STTR) programs provide opportunities for small,
high technology companies and research institutions to participate in
Government sponsored research and development efforts in key technology
areas. The primary benefit of an SBIR/STTR project for a small business
is in obtaining seed money to explore a technical idea without any loss
of control or loss of equity, including intellectual property rights.
For more information about NASA programs:
http://www.nasa.gov
http://sbir.gsfc.nasa.gov/
http://aetd.gsfc.nasa.gov/sbir/
For more information about MEMA:
http://www.mema.state.md.us
For more information about 3e Technologies International:
http://www.3eti.com
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Contacts:
Cynthia M. O’Carroll
Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.
(Phone: 301/614-5563)
Cynthia.M.Ocarroll@nasa.gov
Quentin Banks
Maryland Emergency Management Agency
(Phone 410/517-5135)
qbanks@mema.state.md.us
Chris Sluss
3e Technologies International
(Phone: 301/944-1261)
csluss@3eti.com |
