Abstract: This paper presents a domain-level user, task and context analysis for response technology, based on sociological studies of disaster and disaster response. The analysis examines three dimensions of disaster-scale, kind and anticipability-that have been linked to differences in response characteristics, including differences in individual and organizational responders and behaviors. It yields a number of implications for design, and reveals five domain-specific design requirements. It also offers systematic characterizations of users, tasks and contexts of response technology, that begin to structure the user interface design space, laying a foundation for a theory of design. This work provides a conceptual basis to help researchers and designers recognize and address possible limitations of design decisions, leading, ultimately, to more usable and effective response technologies.

Abstract: Group-oriented services including data dissemination, group calls and real-time video transmission are considered as an important application in public safety communications. The main interest is in one-way real-time video transmission from the hot spot to multiple recipients. This is important for efficient emergency response. The changing topology of the multi-hop communication links in a public safety environment makes routing and multicasting extremely challenging task. The purpose of this paper is to study the performance of wireless mobile ad-hoc networks with one-way multicast video traffic. To consider a realistic public safety scenario, the effect of extensive unidirectional links is investigated. The system performance study of various ad-hoc network configurations is done by simulations. For wireless multicast routing, the On Demand Multicast Routing Protocol is used. The performance results are compared with the requirements provided by Statement of Requirement document of standardization project MESA.

Abstract: Information is an essential part of disaster management. Information systems (IS) are a key means of providing the right information at the right time to support response to a disaster, and fostering collaborative facilitators such as situation awareness, common ground and communities of practice. However for these collaborative facilitators to support 'downstream events' (i.e. disaster response) they need to emerge and be grown from 'upstream' activities such as user engagement. Subsequently IS design requirements for disaster response are embedded in the community where a system will be used and it is from the community users and their needs that IS requirements must emerge. This paper presents an upstream-downstream approach for disaster management IS design. We describe four phases to user centered information systems design to support disaster management and provide a case study of using this approach in action to design an IS to enhance community resilience. © 2012 ISCRAM.

Abstract: This paper presents results from a field experiment of IT-use in emergency response work of a fire crew. A prototype has been developed to probe for instances of sensemaking supported by IT-use in such work. The findings have been analyzed in relation to research on design of emergency management information systems and sensemaking theory. Key findings from the field experiment suggest that there is a potential conflict between the role-based emergency management information systems and the shared use of information technology of first responders. Further it is advocated that prototypes should be used to explore the extrinsic of the work practice difficult to uncover using only direct-observation or interviews.

Abstract: This paper analyses the collaborative dynamic of community in response to urgent situations. Community emergencies arising from natural or man-induced threats are considered as exogenous events that stimulate community resources to be unified around the response, action, and recovery activities related to the emergency. A structured equation model is derived to depict the actions of the community system. The system is described in terms of its resources including the propensity to trigger community action and collaboration among diverse groups. The community is profiled with respect to its ability to respond. The system defines the trigger mechanisms that are considered to be the drivers of collaborative action. A simulation model is presented to enact the system emergencies, community profiles, and collaborative response. The results develop an improved understanding of conditions that engage community collaborative actions as illustrated by examples from community research in the EnRiCH and the C-Change community research projects.

Abstract: This paper describes the Disaster Portal, a multi-faceted information portal for use by citizens and emergency personnel during disasters and emergency response. This portal is the result of a collaboration between the RESCUE project at UC-Irvine and the City of Ontario, California Fire Department (OFD). The portal provides a wide range of real-time information in disaster situations, such as situation summaries, announcements, shelter information, and aggregated services such as family reunification and donation management. A first version of this portal was developed and deployed by the City of Ontario in September 2007. The current system serves as a base to develop and refine results from several areas of research which are being incorporated into the existing system to provide additional or advanced capabilities. We provide an overview of the portal's capabilities, followed by technical details on the system architecture and implementation. We describe the experience of deployment of the system in the recent California wildfires. Finally we describe work in progress on several advanced capabilities.

Abstract: Flexibility, variously known as adaptability, tailorability, and customizability, has long been recognized as important in information system (IS) success. Reliability has known value in IS for the resulting predictability it bestows on a system. However increasing flexibility can increase possible paths for system breakdown, and so contribute to failure, i.e. increasing flexibility can reduce reliability. Reliability and flexibility seem in design “tension”, as one creates change and the other resists it. The combination of reliability and flexibility has been called “ robustness”, and it seems a desirable integration particularly for emergency response systems. However typically these two areas are studied separately. Our approach to evaluating the combination of reliability and flexibility is to define two distinct requirements that neither overlap nor contradict, and can be assessed by system users. A questionnaire instrument for users is proposed for measurement of the flexibility and reliability of a system. © Proceedings ISCRAM 2004.

Abstract: The use of social media is not only part of everyday life but also of crises and emergencies. Many studies focus on the concrete use of social media during a specific emergency, but the prevalence of social media, data access and published research studies allows the examination in a broader and more integrated manner. This work-in-progress paper presents the results of a case study with the Fire Department Frankfurt, which is one of the biggest and most modern fire departments in Germany. The findings relate to social media technologies, organizational structure and roles, information validation, staff skills and resources, and the importance of volunteer communities. In the next step, the results will be integrated into the frame of a comparative case study with the overall aim of examining the impact of social media on how emergency services respond and react in an emergency.

Abstract: Correct information is a vital resource during disasters. Without adequate information, response actions may be ineffective. What is the source of information of emergency management systems? Besides that originated from sensors, the emergency team and the public in general, a very relevant source is government data, such as demographic and geographic data, road maps, etc. The heterogeneity of information formats is a well-known problem that affects organizations and communities that want to access public data. Today, most public agencies provide access to their data, but the great majority is unreadable by automated mechanisms. Besides, most of them do not provide a dictionary meaning for the published content. A solution to this problem is of particular importance to emergency response organizations that need access to all information available to better respond to disasters and crisis. The linked open data (LOD) initiative allows the interconnection of data, using standards in the context of the semantic web approach. In ideal conditions, government agencies publish their public data, thus allowing the use of automated data concerned consumers, whether they are other government agencies or citizens. Efforts aimed to link government data are growing in several countries around the world. This talk presents the LOD concepts and describes an architecture that uses LOD in the design of an Emergency Management System. It describes a scheme for collecting available data from government agencies, such as departments of health, transport, works, that can supply information needs during an emergency response operation.

Abstract: This paper examines inter-organizational governance within the context of a County wide Emergency Medical Services (EMS) system. Through a case study approach that included an action research methodology, this paper reports research findings on how one multi-organizational EMS system in California designed a process to establish an inter-organizational IT governance structure. The process resulted in EMS stakeholders defining architectural qualities that could be used to drive the EMS enterprise to a higher level of architecture maturity. That is, away from inherent business silos and towards greater levels of standardization and integration of information and technology across all stakeholder groups. The San Mateo County, CA Emergency Medical Services (EMS) system provided the case study context to better understand characteristics of a high performing emergency response system. The unique governance structure of this case allowed researchers to formulate a preliminary understanding of what IT governance is within this context and how it plays a role within private and not-for-profit sector large-scale, inter-organizational, emergency response systems. We applied the time critical information services (TCIS) framework to the specific setting of the San Mateo EMS strategic redesign initiative. The TCIS framework was used to drive roundtable discussions and in addition to obtaining a better understanding of the governance dimension, much was also learned about the operational and organizational dimensions of a high performing emergency response system. From these discussions, a set of 11 key findings were developed in order to guide the county's procurement strategy and future strategic direction. The impact of these findings is that they will be used to formulate public and private sector service contracts that will remain in effect for the next 10 years.

Abstract: A recent review of the procedures covering the RPII's responsibilities under the National Emergency Plan for Nuclear Accidents has shown the need for a management information system (MIS) to support the organisation's operational plan for emergency preparedness and response. This paper describes the design objectives and the development of a prototype version of this system. Specific functions of the MIS are highlighted along with a description of the motivation behind their development. This very simple MIS has already helped RPII staff members to operate more efficiently. Finally, some ideas for future development are outlined. © Proceedings ISCRAM 2004.

Abstract: The role of communication and information provision in coping with natural and man-made disasters and emergency situations is becoming increasingly important. In this paper we present an integrated mobile information and communication system, MIKoBOS, for emergency response operations that enables reliable data communication within the emergency site as well as between the site and the headquarters. It provides the responsible personnel involved in the emergency operation at different levels with anytime-anywhere access to relevant information. Compared to traditional voice-dominated approaches, the proposed system can greatly improve the effectiveness and efficiency of communication and coordination during disaster relief operations. Promising experimental performance results are provided for use with a number of terrestrial and satellite networks.