Mobile device use in recovery and early response

Mobile IT is at the center of emergency management of the future. I saw a video tape (that is how long ago it was) about an earthquake in California close to fifteen years ago. It was showing what the future held for the use of technology in a disaster. First it showed an earthquake warning system altering civilians and giving them a few seconds warning, enough to take cover. Japan has this system in place today and was used during the Mega Quake. It gave as much as thirty seconds warning depending on how far you were away from the epicenter. There is a wave that an earthquake produces that travels faster than the physical movement and can be recorded. Tens of thousands of residents received a warning on their cell phones. It was used even to trip some factories to shut off prior to the physical effects were felt.

Next it showed CERT team members using what is now an IPad to report damage and injuries to the EOC. It showed the same type of technology being used by the first responders to report progress or report damage. In Haiti they used a program to map the local of incoming calls of damage and injuries using cell phone location. These maps were used by the Marine Corp and Coast Guard to decide on the best use of their resources. So it is already beginning to happen.

I think the use of drones with live feeds to the EOC to receive an early damage assessment are the next big thing. Think if they could have been launched immediately after the tornado in Joplin.

I am not even touching on the power of social media to warn as well as collection information from the public.

So IT and mobile devices are at the center of emergency management. The biggest question is how to integrate it with current operations.

Crowdmap and Crowd Sourcing in a Disaster

Crowdmap is a free program that allows you to begin to use the social media in your community. It is brought to you by the people who originally saw the use of social media with their Ushahidi program used extensively in Haiti right after the quake to identify where the worst damage and injured were located. Initially they used a physical map and pins now they have developed a program that automatically locates the origin of the call.

Crowdmap uses a map and immediately to mark where a call originated . You are able to begin to rapidly visualize where damage and clusters of people with injuries are located in your community. This information will allow you to use your resources more efficiently. This crowd sourcing of information is a powerful new tool to more rapidly size up a community after a disaster. It not only gives you dynamic map but it will track by time the reports and allows your to analyze the data as it is accumulated.

Crowd sourcing is a power new tool that takes advantage of the use of social media by your community's population. It is a powerful tool that should become standard operating procedure for any Office of Emergency Management.