Helping to Improve Disaster Response with Advanced IT Overview

Hurricane Katrina, the London and Madrid bombings, the 2004 Asian tsunami, the 2002 European floods, and 9/11. The 21st century has begun with a legion of natural and man-made disasters, and governments and industries are seeking to improve the speed and effectiveness of incident response.

In municipalities around the world, crisis response emerges from specific locations, often called Emergency Operations Centers (EOCs). In turn, local EOCs are sometimes coordinated by larger regional or national entities; e.g. the Federal Emergency Management Agency's National Incident Management System Integration Center. In times of disaster, EOCs coordinate multiple agencies-fire and rescue, law enforcement, hazmat, etc. as well as community organizations. This task requires communications and information sharing that can be accessed by people in different locations, using various devices.

Collaborating Through Microsoft Office-Based Technologies
Infusion Development and crisis management consultancy, Catalyst Capabilities International, recognized that Microsoft Office, server, and mapping technologies would provide a foundation for the Joint Emergency Planning & Response System (JEPRS). Many agencies that are likely to deploy JEPRS may be familiar with the Microsoft-based IT environment and already utilize some of the required technologies, such as Windows Server 2003 and Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007 . JEPRS also draws on the collaboration features of Groove 2007 , the IM capabilities of Microsoft Office Live Communications Server 2005 , and the forms management capabilities of InfoPath 2007 .

Benefiting from a Familiar User Interface
EOCs and other disaster relief agencies and organizations often have high turnovers and inconsistent volunteer participation. As a result, the effectiveness of JEPRS could be minimized if personnel had to learn how to use entirely new tools-or were unable to navigate an unfamiliar interface during a crisis. Microsoft Office provides intuitive, simple and familiar interfaces that enable JEPRS to be used with little training.

Solution Transferability
Public sector at all levels of government; non-profit crisis response organizations; utilities; transportation; insurance can leverage this solution.

The Critical Need to Provide a Common Operating Picture During a Crisis
To some observers, the crisis of Hurricane Katrina was exacerbated by a slow, inefficient, and uncoordinated response. In the hours after Katrina's landfall, it appeared to some that officials did not have a common, real-time picture of the situation on the ground or sufficient access to critical information. Were the New Orleans levees breached? What was the emergency capacity of the Superdome? How much potable water was immediately available for responders? Katrina, as well as other recent disasters, made it clear to emergency management professionals that better information management, disaster planning, and communications can be very important in responding to disaster.

The Solution: Joint Emergency Planning & Response System (JEPRS)
Infusion Development, Catalyst Capabilities International, and Microsoft collaborated to develop the Joint Emergency Planning & Response System . will first be deployed and tested by the Kelowna, BC, Fire Department, which oversees emergency operations for a region of 165,000 people. Several other customers are expected to deploy JEPRS following the Kelowna deployment. Built with Microsoft Office, server, and mapping technologies, JEPRS enables emergency response personnel to plan and implement crisis management programs. A Web client enables rapid deployment and wide reach, a smart client delivers offline capabilities, and a mobile client extends the solution to mobile devices.

More Information
To learn more about JEPRS, click here .
For Public Safety Solutions, click here .
For Military and Defense Solutions, click here .