Annual Report 2007

Tracking the Location and Availability of Emergency Resources racking the location and availability of resources such as hospitals, transportation equipment and water during an emergency situation can be life-saving. A collaborative mapping tool developed by GTRI is helping emergency management officials better coordinate event and incident planning – and real-time response. GTRI has teamed with Atlanta-based company Emergency Visions to provide mapping capabilities for a resource database the firm developed to identify, activate, track and coordinate response assets. The tools were selected by the Florida Division of Emergency Management in June 2007 as part of a solution that combines these comprehensive technology tools with the training and management expertise of a team led by the International City/ County Management Association (ICMA). “A lot of mapping systems are pretty complex to operate. Our system was deliberately designed to T be easy to use for people who are not mapping experts,” said Kirk Pennywitt, a GTRI senior research engineer. The Geographic Tool for Visualization and Collaboration (GTVC) can track chemical or smoke plumes and help management personnel plan evacuation routes for emergencies such as hurricanes, fires or flooding. To do this, the system tracks resources including the locations of hospitals, fire stations, schools, nursing homes, sand bags, dump trucks, water, personnel and supplies in an affected region. The map can also indicate the status of those assets, such as the number of beds available in a specific hospital. Emergency planners can immediately get a snapshot of what is going on without relying solely on traditional voice communications. The symbols displayed on the map are the Department of Homeland Security’s official emergency management icons. During an event, electronic feeds can alert users to new incidents and display the location of the events live on the map. Also, GTVC records every user’s actions so that those in command can review them after the event to improve planning for future events. The combined mapping and database system provides Florida with a robust networked emergency management system that it plans to implement in all 67 of the state’s counties. The Georgia Emergency Management Agency has been using the system since 2005 to track forest fires and hurricanes. Hillsborough County, Fla. and Dakota County, Minn. have also licensed the emergency management software for their incident preparedness plans. “We’ve also had interest from more than 100 other cities, counties and local agencies,” added Pennywitt. GTRI’s mapping tool, GTVC, can identify, track and coordinate emergency response assets. www.gtri.gatech.edu http://www.gtri.gatech.edu

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Annual Report 2007

Annual Report 2007 Contents From the Director Research at GTRI Defense and Security Health and Human Systems Energy and Environment Manufacturing Technologies Information and Communication Technologies GTRI Around the World Interdisciplinary Research Centers The Laboratories of GTRI Georgia Tech Ireland GTRI by the Numbers GTRI and Georgia Tech Supporting Breakthrough Research GTRI Professional Education The People of GTRI

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