Whether you’re fighting fires, providing relief, or evacuating citizens, anything that can make the job easier can often lead to more lives saved. So, we’ve hunted down some of the coolest and most interesting emergency management technology we know you’ll love!
AirBurners
With wildfires raging across the globe and some countries seeing record high numbers, we think this is a good place to start.
One of the key ways to fight wildfires is through prevention and not allowing the fire to get a foothold in the first place. This is regularly accomplished through hazard-reduction burning (or backburning), where brush is burned prematurely to deny the fuel the fire needs to rage on.
AirBurners are a really cool new technology invented in Australia that allow for the burning of brush with minimal impact on the environment by having low smoke emission. Surrounding communities and mother nature are both quite happy about this one!
FireAld
Sticking with the wildfire technology, this one gives firefighters an even bigger advantage.
FireAld combines the incredible predictive power of AI with the experience and knowledge of firefighting experts. This technology uses critical data to produce risk maps, action plans, and pre-optimized resource management to give those fighting wildfires the best possible strategy to eliminate the fire. Basically, it gives firefighters the most likely problem areas, along with the optimal way to reduce or eliminate the risk. Very cool.
Smart Vehicles
When a critical accident occurs and someone is injured, the difference between life and death can often come down to the response time.
Smart Vehicles aren’t a totally new concept, we’re sure a few readers are already driving cars with built-in GPS, touchscreens, or full-blown electric power. However, one added benefit is that these vehicles are also connected to the internet, allowing information to be transmitted immediately and precisely to emergency responders. With smart vehicles, they can come to the scene knowing the exact location, the time of the accident, and even how severe it might be. These are all things that could save someone’s life.
Check Out Another Blog: 6 Things You Didn’t Know About Disaster Relief!
AED Drones
As we mentioned before, response time is critical to the preservation of life. This goes double for cases where a defibrillator is needed.
The human brain can only go around 4 minutes without oxygen before permanent brain damage can occur. So, the difference between reviving a person at 3 minutes and 5 minutes is incredibly important. AED Drones allow for defibrillators to be flown to areas where an ambulance might have a trickier time getting there. Even saving the time it would take to take the elevator up to the tip floor of a building could make a massive difference!
So, what other technologies are on the horizon and are there any risks involved with using them? We’re so glad you asked because that was the exact topic of discussion in the latest episode of Conquering Chaos and Mayhem! This week’s episode welcomes Professor of the Disaster and Emergency Management Master’s Degree program at York University, Ali Asgary.
Join Host Darryl Culley as he talks to Ali about the emerging technologies that are helping fight all kinds of disasters (even some not available to the wider public yet!). They also discuss why it’s crucial to understand the risks associated with these technologies. “These kinds of technology will transform emergency management to the next level, although we are mindful of the potential risk this might generate.”
