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Case Study (Feb 2011): Fusionpoint Supports Major US-Canada Cross Border Exercise

EmerGeo in partnership with FutureShield and the University of Windsor joined forces with emergency responders to provide situational awareness and crisis management software in support of a major US-Canada cross border exercise called Exercise Central Gateway 1.

The purpose of this joint exercise was to test emergency preparedness and response during a mock terrorism event – one of the biggest Ontario exercises ever. With Windsor being so close to the US border and a vital traffic flow corridor for trade between the US and Canada, participants understood the value of securing their location for the economic well-being of Canada.

This event was a “first” for many things, and it seemed to be the most-used phrase among participants: “first time” things were tried, “first time” to see something function in the field, “first time” to see something work. And one of the biggest “firsts” that were shown in this exercise is the realization that private industry, academia, government officials and first responders can work together to enhance and improve our ability to keep our nation safe and secure.

With the incredible efforts among the exercise coordinators and participants, the government funding by organizations such as the DRDC Centre for Security Science and its CRTI and PSTP programs, with private industry like EmerGeo and FutureShield offering their technology support and products, this exercise showed that this first will not be the last.

Read the full Case Study here: <link to PDF document>

EmerGeo Speaking at the Emergency Operations Center (EOC) & Disaster Response Operations Conference (India)

Mumbai, India – February 14-15, 2011 – The Emergency Operations Center (EOC) & Disaster Response Operations Conference is designed to address emerging trends in comprehensive emergency & disaster management systems, integration of Critical Infrastructures and key resources (such as power, atomic stations, bridges, dams, oil installations, gas pipe lines etc), and role of the EOC.

Stakeholders from Government (including all 14 emergency service function agencies) and the private sector need to follow standardized emergency response management procedures and practices and sharpen their “group skills” through exercising and training on regular basis.

Global experts, including EmerGeo’s representative (Mr. Bryce Mitchell) will speak on: technology (emergency communication, intelligent decision support systems), interoperability and scalability issues connected with EOC design. Day-1 of the conference includes experts from Illinois Fire Service Institute (USA), along with Mr. M V Deshmukh (Director, State Fire Service, MH) deliberating on Emergency & Disaster Pre-Event Planning, Initial Response, Critical Decision-making and Multi-State Response in four separate breakout sessions. Day-2 of the conference is devoted to EOC design, operation and management.

More conference information is available at http://respect.org.in/icerdm/conference_agenda.php.

EmerGeo Participates in National Disaster Simulation Project

EmerGeo Mapping a Key Component of an Interoperability Framework for Municipal-Provincial-Federal Collaboration.

September 28, 2007

VANCOUVER B.C. – EmerGeo Solutions Inc. is collaborating with key Canadian federal agencies and industry partners in a three-year disaster simulation project led by CAE and funded by the Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear Research and Technology Initiative (CRTI).

CRTI was launched in May 2002 as the federal science community’s response to providing science solutions to CBRNE terrorist threats. It has been very successful in building linkages among non-traditional partners and across organizational boundaries. These new communities have increased Canada’s knowledge and preparedness for countering CBRNE threats by working together on a common mission.

Like most major emergencies and disasters, CBRN threats demand a collaborative response from diverse municipal, provincial, and federal stakeholders. Collaboration can only be achieved when common and compatible standards, processes, protocols, and tools are used by responders at the scene to provincial-federal agencies supporting the response effort.

The project, announced in December 2006 by CAE, is to develop a simulation-based emergency management experimentation capability to support analysis, training, and operational rehearsal for Canadian homeland security organizations. The project team will build an operational architecture based on the critical incident responses of organizations to selected scenarios. Simulated CBRN events will unfold within the selected geographical area of Vancouver and the Vancouver-Whistler corridor.

EmerGeo mapping software will integrate a high-resolution map (geospatial dataset) as the basis for a Common Operating Picture Environment (COPE).

Simulated incidents, resources and activities will be injected onto 2-D and 3-D maps used by municipal-provincial-federal decision-makers.

The simulation environment will test strategies and tactics used to protect people and property. Outputs from CBRN models used at Defence Research and Development Canada (DRDC) Suffield, chemical plume “foot prints” produced by Environment Canada’s “urban canyon” dispersion algorithms, and simulated movement of police, fire and other resources will be displayed on EmerGeo’s planning and situation overview maps as the scenario unfolds.

Three simulation-based scenarios will test the municipal-provincial-federal responder interfaces in terms of command, control, shared awareness, and the extent to which operational interoperability can be achieved.

The simulation-based analysis will be used to validate the current operational architecture, investigate potential challenges, and establish a platform to enhance municipal-provincial-federal interoperability.

The project participants include:

FEDERAL PARTNERS:

DRDC Ottawa and DRDC Suffield
Royal Canadian Mounted Police – E-Division
Environment Canada – Canadian Meteorological Centre
Department of National Defence – Canadian Forces Experimentation Centre

INDUSTRY LEAD

OTHER PARTNERS:

EmerGeo Solutions, Inc.
Justice Institute of British Columbia
Vancouver Police Department

More information on the CRTI 05-0058TD Project can be found here.

EmerGeo Solutions, Inc. provides consulting services and fully integrated situation awareness technology solutions to help manage risk in Emergency Management, Environment Health & Safety, Security and Business Resilience for government and industry. Our EmerGeo software application provides all decision-makers with timely access to critical information and the decision-support tools needed before, during and after emergencies and major events.

EmerGeo’s unique managed Common Operating Picture (mCOP™) technology allows information stored in siloed systems to be shared securely and in a controlled way among work groups so that all decision-makers are working from the most up-to-date, accurate and validated information available. Our hosted Learning Management System (eLearning) ensures customers can implement our technology and best practices in a cost-effective manner.

EmerGeo provided installation and onsite training services.

EmerGeo provided installation and onsite training services.

July 23, 2007

VANCOUVER B.C. – The National Emergency Management Agency Tobago Office was looking for a replacement of its Lotus Notes® based emergency management information system called EM2000. It needed a system capable of providing real-time messaging and event tracking during major emergencies such as hurricanes. WebEOC was selected as the replacement solution and EmerGeo was selected as the implementation services provider. Installation and training was conducted the week of July 9th 2007.

WebEOC is designed to deliver real time emergency information to the Tobago Emergency Operation Centre and improve the emergency management agency’s capacity to serve the island of Tobago with greater efficiency.

Read the story on NEMA Tobago’s website by clicking here.

Washington State and Benton County Exercise EmerGeo (CSEPP)

EmerGeo emergency mapping software was used last week to support communications and interoperability during a major exercise.

June 7, 2007

VANCOUVER B.C. – shortly after EmerGeo Solutions installed its EmerGeo™ emergency mapping software in the State of Washington and Benton County Emergency Operation Centers, the software was put to the test during a multi-agency Chemical Stockpile Emergency Protection Program (CSEPP) exercise on May 22, 2007.

The U.S. Army has safely stored chemical warfare agents for decades at seven U.S. Army installations around the United States. One of these installations is the Umatilla Chemical Depot near Hermiston, Oregon. In 1985, Congress ordered the destruction of these weapons and subsequently ordered “maximum protection” of the public near the installations until the chemical weapons were gone. Emergency Operations Centers in Umatilla, Morrow and Benton counties (Washington) as well as the states of Oregon and Washington, maintain readiness to coordinate response activities through regular exercising of state-of-the art computer software to track and forecast toxic plumes.

The Washington State Division of Emergency Management, Benton County Emergency Services along with several local hospitals, fire and police agencies, and volunteers participated in the annual exercise of the Chemical Stockpile Emergency Preparedness Plan (CSEPP).

“In the Benton County EOC, during this exercise, we were able to use EmerGeo to allow our Law Enforcement and Shelter representatives to input their own locations on the Incident Map. This freed up our mapping person to keep the Plume data current on the map. Resulting in an up-to-date incident map that was available on each desk top in the EOC”, states Lyle Ball, Department of Energy Planner.

The State of Washington had a similar experience with the EmerGeo software. Allen Jakobitz, Science & Technology Program Manager for Washington State Emergency Management reported “I am very satisfied with the use of EmerGeo during this first exercise. I didn’t have any problems with the application”.

The Umatilla area is safer today, thanks to the foresight of Benton County and the State of Washington Emergency Management Division to implement an OpenGIS® based emergency mapping application to support CSEPP’s public safety program.

EmerGeo Solutions’ participation with these organizations will continue to strengthen their emergency readiness capabilities for residents and businesses in the immediate vicinity around the Depot until the chemical munitions are eliminated forever.

More information on CSEPP can be found at http://www.csepp.net/frcsepp.html.

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