<body><div><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=27gSOf_0vxrATEH00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=27gSOf_0vxrATEH00" width="480" height="293" >The Science and Technology Directorate’s (S&amp;T) Search and Rescue Common Operating Platform (SARCOP) is providing emergency managers in the region critical data that is informing response and relief efforts in real time according to a news release today.Last week was a somber reminder of how quickly disasters can devastate our communities. In the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, we are mindful of the struggles of those impacted, the thousands of people whose lives have been turned upside down by the storm.Thankfully, public safety officials and volunteers have been working tirelessly to distribute aid and get families and first responders the resources they need. S&amp;T is coordinating closely with our partners at the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and state and local governments to most effectively deploy technologies that can support the ongoing response and recovery efforts. Technology can be a force-multiplier in a crisis, helping the people on the ground operate more effectively and efficiently when every minute counts.One technology in particular has been useful in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene: S&amp;T’s SARCOP. This multiagency, urban search and rescue-based platform allows officials to aggregate and share massive amounts of data in an intuitive dashboard, helping improve situational awareness and team efficiency when conducting search and rescue operations.As of October 1, SARCOP supported more than 100 search and rescue teams across seven states, with over 5,000 individual team members connected and engaged in the hurricane response. Our partners at the National Alliance for Public Safety GIS Foundation (NAPSG) have been working around the clock over the past two weeks, supporting FEMA and state urban search and rescue teams, assisting with overall SARCOP coordination, just-in-time training, and full incident-wide operations. SARCOP maps and data points have assisted in over 100,000 searches across several locations and structures. Of those structures searched, the teams have already completed damage assessments for 80,000 of them. This kind of progress is critical to finding people trapped in debris and vulnerable individuals who may be unable to reach help due to compromised lines of communication or transportation infrastructure. It’s also an important reminder of the real-world impact technology can have when it is built with direct input and feedback from the practitioners who will use it. When response teams first arrive after a crisis, it can be difficult to coordinate and share information across disciplines and geographic locations. We heard this loud and clear from the response community, and it informed S&amp;T’s partnership with FEMA and NAPSG to develop a solution that could help overcome the information-sharing challenge. SARCOP addresses a specific need raised by the nation’s responders, and S&amp;T is proud to offer our expertise in building and refining this platform.On behalf of the entire Directorate, I want to thank the search and rescue teams for their continued efforts. Your work is critical, as are your voices and guidance on ways technology can help you achieve your mission. Our communities depend on you, and S&amp;T stands ready to support you however we can.Visit NAPSG’s SARCOP page for more information about accessing the platform.</div></body>

Mountain View, CA

NewsBreak

SARCOP Platform Delivers Real-Time Data to Aid Emergency Managers in Response Efforts via DHS S&T System

The Science and Technology Directorate’s (S&T) Search and Rescue Common Operating Platform (SARCOP) is providing emergency managers in the region critical data that is informing response and relief efforts in real time according to a news release today. Last week was a somber reminder of how quickly disasters can...