Oil Spill Responders Share Information Through Real-Time Emergency Response System

The April 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico reminded emergency managers just how critical it is to share up-to-date information in a disaster. When the oil washed up on beaches and threatened lives and property, many agencies had to coordinate rapidly to contain the threat.

While real-time communication has posed a challenge in many past disasters, those agencies involved in the Deepwater Horizon oil spill response were aware of a new prototype system -- developed by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science & Technology Directorate (S&T) under the Virtual USA (vUSA) initiative. The new system, which made it possible to instantly share information with one another, was a terrific boon to all emergency managers involved.

The Southeast Regional Operations Platform Pilot (SE ROPP) is part of an initiative funded by S&T’s First Responder Technologies (R-Tech) Program and sponsored by S&T’s Command, Control, and Interoperability (CCI) Division. This initiative creates a cost-effective capability to significantly improve information sharing in emergencies throughout the nation, in support of the larger vUSA effort. States throughout the Southeast are now participating in the pilot.

DHS S&T released the prototype system ahead of schedule to assist SE ROPP participants with the oil spill response.

The southeast states thus became the first to explore improved capabilities during a large-scale disaster, right after the oil began leaking into the Gulf. Louisiana officials use Virtual Louisiana -- the state’s system for aggregating and displaying emergency information -- to share oil spill incident reports with neighboring states and federal agencies.

Accessible via a prototype system developed as part of vUSA, this information is updated three times daily and whenever a new report is filed, to help emergency responders stay abreast of the latest oil sightings, beach cleanup efforts, health reports, and affected wildlife. The reports are available to thousands of personnel at the Unified Command (UC) Centers in Mobile, Ala. and Houma, La., as well as state and local agencies in each of the affected states -- Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, and Mississippi.

“SE ROPP has proved that it’s not the technology, it is a matter of people’s willingness [to share information] and putting agreements in place to resolve interoperability issues and shared information instantly available to better serve [the public] before, during, or after an incident or disaster,” said Christine Lee, program manager for the DHS S&T R-Tech program.

Participating in the SE ROPP gave the states an opportunity to develop a strong regional coalition in preparation for future emergencies. This new coalition is being used in the oil spill response effort, according to Travis Johns, IT Applications Branch Manager for the Louisiana Governor’s Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness. Louisiana officials are using capabilities created through the SE ROPP to share information about oil rig sites, the projected path and density levels of the oil spill, boom sites, seabird nesting colonies, and wildlife management areas with other Gulf states.

“Our agency has always worked very hard to get good, current information to present to decision makers, but participation in Virtual USA has yielded the benefit of improved situational awareness, response, and planning following the oil spill,” Johns said. “The collaboration and information sharing of the emergency operators in the time of crisis is truly notable.”

Emergency managers are using vUSA to improve coordination in myriad ways. In the Florida State Emergency Operations Center in Tallahassee, state environmental, wildlife, and emergency management officials collaborated to use information from Geospatial Assessment Tool for Operations and Response (GATOR) -- the state emergency preparedness information system Florida built through its participation in the SE ROPP – to make decisions about the oil spill cleanup.

The Florida Department of Environmental Protection used maps from GATOR to monitor impacts, helping state officials to pinpoint areas in which the oil could be recovered. The state also used the system to share photographs of locations where oil has been spotted.

“Of particular note, the [Florida State Emergency Response Team] SERT staff has collected over 75,000 geotagged photos, totaling over 240 gigabytes of photos, as well as over 7,000 reconnaissance reports and made them available through GATOR as downloadable shapefiles and via map services,” said David Halstead, director of the Florida Division of Emergency Management.

In neighboring Alabama, Forest Ranger Ethan Barrett, assigned to the State Forward Operations Center, registered for a vUSA account in June 2010. With the account, he could look up whether the state’s beaches were public or private -- information required by the Alabama Emergency Management Agency to determine what procedures must be followed for cleaning up any oil that washed ashore on particular beaches. Barrett anticipates vUSA will have utility during future emergencies, such as when he and colleagues from Alabama Forestry Commission are deployed to assist with forest fires in other states.

“I can see where it’s going to be a big asset,” said Barrett.

Many other emergency responders are accessing vUSA as part of the oil spill response. Marine and wetlands researchers at the Gulf Coast Research Laboratory in Ocean Springs, Miss. and environmental officials from other states also have expressed interest in sharing information via vUSA.

“More than 40,000 local, state, and federal personnel responded to the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico,” said Kathleen M. Higgins, chief of stakeholder relations for CCI. “Those responders have been working diligently to protect the shoreline and wildlife. Participants in the Virtual USA Regional Operations Platform Pilot collaboratively share real-time data as they decide how best to contain and disperse the oil.”

ROPP participants discuss information sharing, as well as best practices, through the R-Tech program’s First Responder Communities of Practice. This virtual workplace gives emergency responders a secure online space to discuss projects such as vUSA with other responders and homeland security officials. On the Website, first responders and local, state, tribal, and federal homeland security officials can communicate, network, and collaborate on a variety of team projects and critical homeland security initiatives.

 

Featured

  • Video Surveillance Trends to Watch

    With more organizations adding newer capabilities to their surveillance systems, it’s always important to remember the “basics” of system configuration and deployment, as well as the topline benefits of continually emerging technologies like AI and the cloud. Read Now

  • New Report Reveals Top Trends Transforming Access Controller Technology

    Mercury Security, a provider in access control hardware and open platform solutions, has published its Trends in Access Controllers Report, based on a survey of over 450 security professionals across North America and Europe. The findings highlight the controller’s vital role in a physical access control system (PACS), where the device not only enforces access policies but also connects with readers to verify user credentials—ranging from ID badges to biometrics and mobile identities. With 72% of respondents identifying the controller as a critical or important factor in PACS design, the report underscores how the choice of controller platform has become a strategic decision for today’s security leaders. Read Now

  • Overwhelming Majority of CISOs Anticipate Surge in Cyber Attacks Over the Next Three Years

    An overwhelming 98% of chief information security officers (CISOs) expect a surge in cyber attacks over the next three years as organizations face an increasingly complex and artificial intelligence (AI)-driven digital threat landscape. This is according to new research conducted among 300 CISOs, chief information officers (CIOs), and senior IT professionals by CSC1, the leading provider of enterprise-class domain and domain name system (DNS) security. Read Now

  • ASIS International Introduces New ANSI-Approved Investigations Standard

    • Guard Services
  • Cloud Security Alliance Brings AI-Assisted Auditing to Cloud Computing

    The Cloud Security Alliance (CSA), the world’s leading organization dedicated to defining standards, certifications, and best practices to help ensure a secure cloud computing environment, today introduced an innovative addition to its suite of Security, Trust, Assurance and Risk (STAR) Registry assessments with the launch of Valid-AI-ted, an AI-powered, automated validation system. The new tool provides an automated quality check of assurance information of STAR Level 1 self-assessments using state-of-the-art LLM technology. Read Now

New Products

  • Unified VMS

    AxxonSoft introduces version 2.0 of the Axxon One VMS. The new release features integrations with various physical security systems, making Axxon One a unified VMS. Other enhancements include new AI video analytics and intelligent search functions, hardened cybersecurity, usability and performance improvements, and expanded cloud capabilities

  • Mobile Safe Shield

    Mobile Safe Shield

    SafeWood Designs, Inc., a manufacturer of patented bullet resistant products, is excited to announce the launch of the Mobile Safe Shield. The Mobile Safe Shield is a moveable bullet resistant shield that provides protection in the event of an assailant and supplies cover in the event of an active shooter. With a heavy-duty steel frame, quality castor wheels, and bullet resistant core, the Mobile Safe Shield is a perfect addition to any guard station, security desks, courthouses, police stations, schools, office spaces and more. The Mobile Safe Shield is incredibly customizable. Bullet resistant materials are available in UL 752 Levels 1 through 8 and include glass, white board, tack board, veneer, and plastic laminate. Flexibility in bullet resistant materials allows for the Mobile Safe Shield to blend more with current interior décor for a seamless design aesthetic. Optional custom paint colors are also available for the steel frame.

  • Luma x20

    Luma x20

    Snap One has announced its popular Luma x20 family of surveillance products now offers even greater security and privacy for home and business owners across the globe by giving them full control over integrators’ system access to view live and recorded video. According to Snap One Product Manager Derek Webb, the new “customer handoff” feature provides enhanced user control after initial installation, allowing the owners to have total privacy while also making it easy to reinstate integrator access when maintenance or assistance is required. This new feature is now available to all Luma x20 users globally. “The Luma x20 family of surveillance solutions provides excellent image and audio capture, and with the new customer handoff feature, it now offers absolute privacy for camera feeds and recordings,” Webb said. “With notifications and integrator access controlled through the powerful OvrC remote system management platform, it’s easy for integrators to give their clients full control of their footage and then to get temporary access from the client for any troubleshooting needs.”