Vancouver Fire & Rescue Services Case Study
“Command teams have seconds to make
Protect responders
Measure exposure to toxic chemicals and stressors in the moment.
Faster response times
Track the location, status, and wellbeing of each crew member in real time to respond more quickly.
Monitor long-term health
Use combined data from all events to set health baselines and send that private data to each firefighter's doctor who can monitor for anomalies across the entire career of a firefighter.
About Vancouver Fire Rescue Services
Vancouver Fire Rescue Services (VFRS) is committed to the health and safety of their staff and the community. VFRS focuses on enhancing awareness through education and involvement while providing world-class fire and rescue services.
The challenge
Life as a firefighter is not easy. Although motivated by the need to save people and property, every time they do their job, they put their own health and life at risk. This includes exposure to toxic chemicals and stressors, injury by accident, or suffering a medical emergency while in the midst of attending an event.
The risks they face are further exacerbated by an ever-changing and extremely hazardous work environment. No fire is the same, flames and temperatures can increase unpredictably, and structures can collapse.
In order to navigate this challenging environment, command teams need full visibility into the situation as it happens. Without these insights, they’re unable to make meaningful decisions in real time, a critical requirement in order to guide responders and ensure the success of the mission.
DC Tyler Moore of the VFRS lives this reality every day and believes that emerging technologies are the answer when it comes to saving the people who save us. His innovative approach provides a fresh perspective to how we can solve these long-standing challenges and ensure the safety and health of first responders.
“Sadly, cancer deaths are common, mainly due to the soup of chemicals that we’re exposed to in the line of duty. But we also see traumatic physical wounds such as burns and cuts. Cardiac events can also occur on the job,” DC Moore said. “Today our model is reactive, we are not able to respond until the damage is done. This isn’t good enough.”
The best way to get a jump on health issues, before they can become life-changing, is to use the IoT data from sensors to build a long-term health picture for firefighters throughout their career. With insight to the different stressors, levels of exposure, and injuries, command teams can provide meaningful decisions, direct resources efficiently, and ensure at-risk firefighters are assigned tasks that will safeguard them from further risk.
The solution
VFRS believes the answer lies in the IoT and, specifically, data extracted from connected sensors worn by firefighters who are responding to an event.
The SensorUp location intelligence platform collects, cleans, and aggregates this data in the moment, providing commanders with a comprehensive view of the event, including the location of firefighters, the environments in which they’re working, and vital statistics including if a crew member is moving or prone.
“Responders may push their limits by remaining in an environment when it’s no longer safe, especially in the interests of saving a human life,” states DC Moore. “Unless you’re standing right beside them, you have no insight to their environment and the immediate risks they face. If you did, you’d order them out immediately. SensorUp technology provides command staff with the ability to track environmental conditions and worker status in the moment so we can ensure every responder makes it out safely.”
By organizing the thousands of data points produced by each sensor attached to a firefighter, SensorUp can provide a singular view of the event in real time and across the career of a responder. Data from other applications can also be integrated for additional insights.
Environment
How is the air quality?
What chemicals are present?
What is the temperature in the room?
First Responder
Is the cardiac rate acceptable?
Is the member moving or prone?
Is body temperature OK?
What is their location?
Do they need to be extricated?
Command staff don’t have time to read through copious amounts of data or consult multiple screens, so the ability to easily view all aspects of the operation as they unfold is imperative. SensorUp displays real-time data visually so at-risk crew members are clearly differentiated and easy to identify and locate.
Automated alerts will trigger when important thresholds are crossed, so proactive measures can be taken. These automated workflows free up time for command staff to focus on the live events. The team can use this data to predict risky situations before they occur and take immediate action to mitigate the danger—often avoiding the scenario entirely.
Equally important, SensorUp can send the health data directly to each firefighter’s doctor, safeguarding the privacy of each member. Doctors can monitor conditions after a specific event and across the entire career of a firefighter. This type of long term monitoring can augment the health and wellness programs provided by their departments.
“I see so many ways we can leverage this technology to save and protect first responders—not just firefighters but police, medics, emergency staff—everyone who works together when responding to an event,” DC Moore stated. “When you have the data, and you can see and understand what’s happening in the moment, the opportunities are truly endless.”