Tag: drones

Fire News

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Picture of burned forest, smoke and flames in background
Pictures like this coming one after another . . .

News often drives these Advisories. You can’t have escaped the latest headlines about summer heat and summer fires. The following selected statistics from various fire news sources will give you an idea of what to expect this summer.

First, sobering statistics on the fire front — and they threaten to continue.

  • Fire season – what’s changed? Last season’s California fires were some of the biggest ever seen. Already this year, fires are burning faster and hotter and earlier. Summer fire season used to start in May. Now fire “season” is all year long.
  • High temperatures – how high? This year heat waves with triple-digit temperatures have hit most western states and even western Canada, setting records and breaking them the next day. (Are you familiar with “heat dome?” The NOAA defines it as “when the atmosphere traps hot ocean air like a lid or cap.”  Read more on the NOAA site and you’ll see that it’s all because the Pacific Ocean has heated up faster than the Atlantic. Expect more about heat domes in upcoming fire news.)
  • Drought – again? High temperatures added to dry vegetation make fires more extreme. Two-thirds of western states are in a drought. In California, 85% of the state is in a drought. The Governor has already called for 15% cut-back in water usage.
  • Deaths Dozens! People have died from these extreme temperatures – because they didn’t have A/C and because they didn’t know how to take care of themselves, or couldn’t. And of course there have been deaths due to the fires, too. The whole situation is sad and distressing.

By contrast, is there any good fire news?

Some. You may want to find out more about each of these!

As mentioned above, the fire season is now officially 12 months long. The Federal Budget has increased funding for permanent firefighter staffs. This means departments can do a better job of planning.

Meanwhile, new technologies are coming online to improve fire detection and firefighting. Drones are a good example. They can find fires (with the help of specialized cameras), assess conditions and direct fire fighters. New apps have been developed, for professionals and citizens, which show fire locations, evacuation zones, current evacuation alerts, and up-dated escape routes. Artificial Intelligence is being harnessed to capture and analyze information from cameras, current and archived weather data, satellite images and modeling tools to predict the likelihood of fire conditions wind patterns, utility service, and more.  

All these have potential, of course, but until there are some massive breakthroughs, it looks as though we are going to experience more and more extreme fire seasons.

What can we do today here in our neighborhood?

This question prompts me to write every week!  What can I do? What can my neighbors do, working together? How can we make use of good guidance and professional resources?

The news in this Advisory, and the emergency situations described below, are meant to help you step up to a higher level — of knowledge and of readiness. Like much of what you see here in Emergency Plan Guide, this Advisory assumes you already know most of the basics. So you can consider these items as extra credit!

How many fire extinguishers should you have in your home?

Where's the nearest fire extinguisher?

“More than you need.” CERT training suggests you attack a fire with a buddy. You both should have extinguishers, both pins should be pulled, both extinguishers tested BEFORE you attack the fire. When you’re ready, approach the fire, aiming at the closest lowest edge. Get it put out quickly! Your 2.5 lb. ABC extinguisher will only discharge for approximately 9 seconds! (5 lb., 14 sec.; 10 lb., 22 sec.) Find out more about extinguishers here. It tells about a special meeting we held, plus has a recommendation for a good deal on purchase.

Fire Alert! Wildfires can blow up out of control within as short as an hour, People need all the advance notice they can get in case they need to evacuate. Can you name three ways YOU will get warnings about fires?

Everyone should be familiar with and able to get multiple alerts: text and phone alerts from Federal and local jurisdictions, news from public airways, and messages from their place of  work. We’ve written before about emergency alerts. Be sure you are signed up if signing up is required! Promote signing up as a community or neighborhood activity. Be aware that PEOPLE WITHOUT INTERNET ACCESS MAY NOT GET ALERTS, particularly if power is out!

Possible gas leak from earthquake! Clouds of dust! A gas line valve needs to be turned off, but you know that a spark could set off an explosion or fire. What tools do you use?  

Non-striking adjustable wrench for use around electricity or gas

You use non-sparking tools — wrenches, hammers, etc. They are made of Aluminum-Bronze (Al-Br) or Copper-Beryllium (CuBe) alloys. (The gold-colored handle might as well be gold, for the price!) If you need non-sparking tools for the job, though, you’ll be thankful you have them.

Wind is pushing embers out miles in front of an advancing wildfire! You don’t expect to have to evacuate, but embers could certainly start a smaller fire. What is the latest fire news for removing vegetation fuel outside the home?

“Keep vegetation 1 foot away from the house, keep plants/bushes trimmed up 2 feet off the ground.” Get all the guidelines at FireWise. (And get rid of all Juniper bushes – to quote the firefighter giving one of the recent presentations I attended, “They are a roman candle ready to explode.”)

A small fire starts in an older public building. The fire department has been called. People are getting safely out. You notice a fire hose and standpipe right there. Are you allowed to use this hose to keep the fire from spreading?

fire hose with standpipe

According to my firefighter host – and supplemented by online research – small hose (1 – ½ in.) already connected to standpipe systems are designed for use by “trained building occupants.” If you feel you are “trained,” and you can safely stop an incipient fire from growing, take action. Open the case, turn on the valve, pull the hose all the way out, turn on nozzle and aim water at base of fire. You may have put the fire out before professionals even arrive. (P.S. They will be bringing their own, heavy-duty equipment.) Thanks to Guardian Fire Equipment for the photo. And here’s more info about these systems (no longer required but still found) with a quiz to finish up with.

Next steps

Every one of the questions above can be turned into a comment, an article, a show-and-tell, a flyer, a study session – perfect for sharing with others. You can invite a guest speaker from the fire department. Everything fire-related is appropriate for every single family and every single community. Please make a commitment to share!

Good luck with your fire prevention and preparation activities.

Virginia
Your Emergency Plan Guide team


Drones in Emergency Situations

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Drone at dawn

By now you know our mantra here at Emergency Plan Guide: “The more we all know, the safer we all will be.” This attitude is convenient for people like me. I enjoy learning more about aspects of emergency preparedness I don’t expect to become an expert in

Today’s Advisory about the use of drones in emergency situations is an example. While we’ve written about drones before, Joe and I don’t own one. But drones appear ever more frequently in First Responder and emergency preparedness circles. When I got the chance to work with an expert, I grabbed at it.

Today’s Advisory is built around the professional roles that drones are playing today. It’s written by Anthony Jamison, head of the Outreach Department of Drone Services Phoenix. The company provides aerial photography and videography for commercial projects (real estate, construction, etc.. (If you’re interested in learning more about drone services as a career, check out their website! Lots of good info there.)

So here’s what Anthony pulled together. I emphasized a few sentences in bold that I thought were particularly important.

How Drones Are Being Used To Assist In Emergency Situations

Drones or unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) have come a long way from their beginnings as a purely military tool. While they remain an indispensable part of countless military operations to this very day, their ever-increasing commercial availability has ushered in a new era of widespread use among everyday people.

Today, UAVs are a potent business tool, with many companies and entrepreneurs leveraging aerial drone photography to further their business goals.

Drones are also proving to be quite handy during emergencies. Let’s take a closer look at how people are using drones for disaster relief and other emergency situations.

Water Rescue

A drone operated by lifeguards saved the lives of two people who were at risk of drowning after getting caught in heavy surf in Australia.

It took only two minutes to complete the rescue. The drone flew half a mile above the struggling swimmers and dropped a flotation device, which helped the swimmers back to shore.

It’s the first time that a drone was used to achieve such a feat. It likely won’t be the last. After all, drones can get much faster to those in trouble in the water than rescuers swimming towards them.

Drones can also be used to scan the surf for sharks and keep beach-goers safe.

Supply Drops

Disasters can render any part of a village, town, or city inaccessible.

With drones, we can now deliver supplies and emergency survival kits to those who need them most without delay. Our increased drone capabilities also mean that we don’t have to risk human lives to make food, water, and medical supply deliveries to victims of a disaster in hard-to-reach spots.

Firefighting

For the longest time, firefighters have been using planes and helicopters to combat wildfires. But flying them through the conditions such conflagrations create can be downright dangerous.

Drones equipped with infrared cameras, however, can fly through thick, black smoke into spots too dangerous for manned aircraft.

Whether they’re carrying buckets and massive tanks filled with water and foam for dumping over large areas or ping-pong ball-sized incendiary devices that deny advancing wildfires of fuel, drones are proving to be quite effective firefighters.

Search and Rescue Operations

Locating people that need rescue and evacuation is a task that drones appear to be built for.

Drones can reach high altitudes, fly into mining shafts, and detect body heat through thermal imaging cameras. They are proving their worth as an indispensable tool for search and rescue operations.

CBRNE Events

Natural disasters are bad enough, but chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, explosive, or CBRNE events are even worse.

Whether the release of hazardous materials was accidental or intentional, like in the case of a terrorist attack, a CBRNE event creates extremely unsafe situations for victims and relief workers alike. However, immediate relief must be provided and the extent of the damage assessed. An aerial drone can help with that and more.

Drones were deployed to inspect the meltdown-hit Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant, a direct result of a powerful earthquake and tsunami that hit Japan in 2011. With the help of drones, authorities were able to receive data that allowed them to measure radiation inside the reactor, monitor possible radiation exposure, and repair destroyed areas.

With drones doing the dangerous parts of the job, nuclear fallout exposure for relief workers was kept to a minimum.

COVID-19 Response

The COVID-19 pandemic is the worst crisis to hit humanity since the Second World War.

To date, the coronavirus has claimed the lives of more than two million people worldwide. Its economic impact is also massive, with millions of people losing their livelihood amid business shutdowns and country-wide lockdowns.

The COVID-19 pandemic, however, has given birth to a larger role for drones.

  • With the pandemic in full swing, drones have become instrumental in contactless food and medical supply deliveries.
  • Drones are seeing use as a disinfectant delivery system, spraying large areas to limit the spread of the coronavirus.
  • In the United States, special drones designed to monitor public spaces and ensure compliance with social distancing protocols are already in use. These UAVs can detect temperatures, heart rates, coughing, and even social distancing.

As drone technology evolves over the years, we can expect to see more developments that will make them even more useful in times of crisis.

What about us non-professionals or hobbyists using drones in emergency situations?

I know that some preppers have considered using drones in non-professional – and maybe even illegal – ways. For example, just today I read an article suggesting that drones could serve to intimidate or distract people approaching your location, or to surveille people or situations that might turn into a threat.

I think these are good uses. The “illegal” part is that these drones would likely be flying low over groups of people, or flying out of the sight of the operator, both of which have not been allowed.

An update on drone regulations has just been announced.

In December, 2020, the Federal Aeronautics Association (FAA) finally passed new rules that have been in the works for a couple of years. They give drones new flexibility to fly at night and over humans and traffic as long as the drone is able to broadcast its identification and location. (Apparently community-based and educational groups will still be able to fly non-remote-ID equipped aircraft in specially designated areas.)

I assume that professional pilots know all the details. (I had trouble finding a source for more than what I’ve written above.) If you are interested in flying a drone as a hobby, be sure to check in with the FAA regarding licensing and flying requirements.  

I’ll close this Advisory with a few more words from Anthony:

As drone technology evolves over the years, we can expect to see more developments that will make them even more useful in times of crisis.

While we may still be a long way off from drones capable of evacuating people from disaster areas, the advances that we are going to see will be just as exciting.

All very thought-provoking, isn’t it?!

Virginia
Your Emergency Plan Guide team

P.S. Our earlier Advisories about drones – what to look for, limitations, what they cost, what equipment they carry, etc. – have been updated. Check them out:


Drones for Emergency Response Teams

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The market for drones for emergency response teams continues to expand.

Drone for emergency response team

Updated 5-2020

We started reporting on drones about 5 years ago. At that time, drones were mostly high-tech toys. Two years ago we updated our reporting, and today it’s time for another update because . . .

Drones for emergency response teams are becoming more common. 

Before you start looking at drones for use by your neighborhood emergency response team, however, it’s a good idea to listen to the advice I got from an excellent training film put on by the Pacific Northwest Economic Region  Center for Regional Disaster Resilience. Here’s the link to the video: https://vimeo.com/296920234  One of the speakers said: “Before you decide on a project, become the local expert and understand how to collect and manage data. ” By the time you’ve done that, you’ll know what equipment you need and the rules you’ll need to follow.

The video mentioned above was by and for a governmental agency. You may not be part of a governmental agency; you may be a hobbyist. But you need to know all the rules!  Here they are as of 2020 . .

Rules for hobbyists, commercial and non-governmental use of UAS (unmanned aircraft systems) . . .are changing!

You need a pilot certificate.

If you’re operating your drone as a hobbyist, that means hobbyist. You’re not operating as a service, or planning to be paid for your services, or to sell your photos, etc. In the past, you didn’t need a certificate but it looks as though you WILL need one soon if not already!

Getting a Remote Pilot Certificate from the FAA requires that you pass a test as well as meet other requirements. Here’s a link to find out more: https://www.faa.gov/uas/getting_started/part_107/remote_pilot_cert/

Register Your Drone.

Whether being flown by a hobbyist or for another reason, any UA must be registered. If it weighs less than .55 lbs you can register it online; otherwise, go to the FAA website to get started registering it on paper.  Here’s the link:  https://www.faa.gov/licenses_certificates/aircraft_certification/aircraft_registry/UA/  

A drone weighing MORE than 55 lbs. falls into another category altogether. (That 55 lbs. includes any cargo that the drone is carrying.)

Pilot Your Drone Safely.

Even though rules change, the main thrust for hobbyists and commercial operators is always on safety. You can check in on a regular basis to monitor any changes, at http://knowbeforeyoufly.org/

Here’s a summary of the current rules:

  • Drones must remain in visual line of sight of the pilot or a sighter — no first-person-view cameras. (This means no flying by what the camera shows as opposed to what you actually see from where you are standing.) You can only fly one line-of-sight vehicle at a time. Maximum distance from pilot is 3 miles.
  • Maximum speed is 100 mph and maximum altitude is 400 feet.
  • Pilots must be at least 16 years old and hold the “remote pilot airman certificate,” mentioned above.
  • Operation is only allowed during daylight hours or twilight with appropriate lighting.
  • Pilots must avoid flying over cars, populated areas or over specific people not involved in the operation.
  • You must understand airspace zones and respect them. Manned aircraft always have the right of way.
  • You must be aware of no-fly zones. (The best drones have “no-fly” zones built into their software.)
  • The big issue, of course, is privacy. While there don’t seem to be clear cut rules regarding privacy, you’ve got to remember that there is a concept called Expectation of Privacy. This usually translates into giving people a warning if you’re going to be flying, not capturing “private” footage if you don’t need to, and deleting it if you’re asked to. If you’re part of a group, you would do well to have a privacy policy to protect your members. Here’s a reference that might be helpful: https://www.ntia.doc.gov/files/ntia/publications/voluntary_best_practices_for_uas_privacy_transparency_and_accountability_0.pdf

Please note — again! – rules keep changing! Some changes have been promised and awaited but are now on hold as a result of the Coronavirus. Get the rules at the FAA.

Using Your Drone as an Emergency Response Tool

While not commercial, and yet not recreational, here are some uses your team might be considering. Before you actually decide to implement any, be sure your use is legal.

  • Use a drone to provide overhead lighting when searching an area at night
  • Inspect upper levels of buildings or structures (in industrial or high-rise residential areas)
  • Film damaged areas or obstructions following a disaster (as long as you don’t interfere with First Responders)
  • Identify “hot spots” after a fire (using infrared technology)
  • Map area covered by the CERT team to segment into manageable areas
  • Find a missing person
  • Search areas for survivors
  • Identify pathways for access or escape or to to safer positions
  • Drop markers to designate specific damages or routes to follow
  • Monitor teams during training exercises with filmed records for group critique
  • Transfer supplies, first aid items, batteries, replacement radios, etc.
  • Transport high value items over a distance, reducing the need for multiples of expensive equipment (e.g., gas sniffer)

You can probably come up with many more.

Challenges for Emergency Teams

1-Rules may limit your emergency response team’s use.

When you look at even this short list of uses, you will see that a number of these uses would be against current rules! Let’s look again . . .

  • Can’t fly at night.
  • Can’t let drone out of your sight.
  • Can’t fly higher than 400 feet.
  • Can’t fly over people.

From our standpoint as emergency responders, these restrictions limit the use of the technology. In a serious situation the safety of our neighbors in the community is more important that the actual altitude of the drone looking for them!

You may request a waiver of some of these restrictions if you can show you can conduct your operations safely. And we have confidence that some of these restrictions may be lifted or clarified, so we are not letting them stop our analysis.

2-Battery life may limit your team’s use.

Most drones have a flying time of only around 20-25 minutes. As technology improves, that will improve. To get a couple minutes more of flight can cost a couple hundred more dollars in purchase price. No matter which model you get, plan on getting at least 3 or 4 extra batteries right along with the machine so you can rapidly put the machine back in the air.

3-Set up in advance to be able to share your images and videos.

Clearly, the emergency planning and response ideas above would generate information you’d want to share with the rest of your team or with First Responders! There are several options available – the obvious one being sending footage to YouTube or Vimeo.

However, the FAA may label your video as “commercial use” if it appears with an ad on it, whether or not you wanted it!  (Again, in an emergency, I’d probably not worry about that. But be aware . . .) Other sharing options include apps provided by Facebook, Dropbox and certain drone manufacturers.

Moreover, if you share any photos, issues of privacy raise their head. Understand how you will manage your data to maintain privacy. Review the resource above in the long list of bullet points.

If you goal is to share your work, find out more before purchasing.

OK, with all this in mind,

Which drone is best for our Neighborhood Response Team?

In our community, we already have some guys who race electric cars. And there are a couple who build and fly model airplanes. The skills they bring to the table will be valuable – but not all of them are on our emergency response team, of course.

So, as we shop for a drone, we have to add “ease of set-up” and “easy to fly” to our shopping list.

Here’s the whole shopping list so far:

  • Big enough to fly outside, in somewhat inclement weather (Cheap toys won’t work.)
  • Strong enough to carry something to a designated location
  • The best battery life we can get for the price
  • Proven performance (not bleeding edge technology)
  • Reasonable image and video quality, though not necessarily the highest
  • Easy to set up and start flying
  • Compatible with variety of hand-held mobile devices

We’ve done a lot of comparing of different machines to get to this point! I hope the data above will be helpful to you in your own search.

See our top choices for drones in Part Two of Drones for Emergency Response Teams.

Virginia
Your Emergency Plan Guide Team

P.S.  I found these important additions. Become an expert before you buy or fly!

  • “Report to the FAA within 10 days of any operation that results in at least serious injury, loss of consciousness, or property damage of at least $500.”
  • “Failure to register an unmanned aircraft that is required to be registered may result in regulatory and criminal penalties. The FAA may assess civil penalties up to $27,500. Criminal penalties include fines of up to $250,000 and/or imprisonment for up to three years.”

Welcome to the World of Drones

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Available for immediate delivery from Amazon . . . just click on the link to get full details!

Below left, white drone, at around $1,000: DJI Phantom 2 Vision+ Quadcopter with FPV HD Video Camera and 3-Axis Gimbal.

Right, at around $50: Hubsan X4 H107C 2.4G 4CH RC Quadcopter With Camera RTF – Black/Red

Hubsan Drone for Sale

Around $50

Why in the world would you want to spend a thousand dollars (or more) on a drone for your Emergency Response Team?

Drone for sale to public

Around $1,000

Answer: If you have money to burn, or if you have a large geographic area to cover or high value properties to document.

Drones are looming big on the horizon. . .

and the Federal Aviation Agency is scrambling to write the rules of use. They are worried (and rightfully so) about the danger drones represent to civilian and commercial aircraft.

But the rules haven’t been written yet and civilian, non-commercial use is growing by leaps and bounds (no pun intended here).

Surveillance of Disaster Areas

One good use for First Responders is to survey the area following a major disaster. Drones can be directed over specific targets and provide excellent photographic records sent in real time to a laptop computer.

This use could shortcut the first responsibility of the Fire Department after a major event, which is to  do a “windshield check” before responding to any individual fires or disaster scenes. The check establishes the passability of roadways and sets priorities for their next steps.

Using drones according to a pre-established grid matrix can accelerate the First Responders’ task, gather more specific and accurate data and allow them to more quickly respond to individual sites.

Delivery of Emergency Equipment

The Neighborhood CERT can use a drone in a similar way, albeit for a specific neighborhood. It could be especially helpful in covering a rural area or a widespread neighborhood geography.

Drones can also be used to deliver emergency supplies, such as a defibrillator, two-way radios, etc. They can also be used in a security setting for surveillance or serve as a deterrent to incursion by strangers.

Weapons of Mini-Mass Destruction?

So much for positive benefits. There is a negative side to drones as well.

While retailers are experimenting with package delivery by drones, it’s probably just a matter of time before some deranged person (or actual terrorist, for that matter) decides to try delivering harmful chemicals or explosives by way of a drone. (Ballistic Drones?)

While it’s doubtful that drones readily available for public purchase can carry large payloads, they do lend themselves to use by individual actors on local targets. And if this seems unlikely – or even a remote likelihood – consider how much fear and potential public hysteria the even more remote threat the Ebola virus created.

If nothing else, it’s something that should give the survivalists something to think about.

 

Joe Krueger
Your Emergency Plan Guide Team