SARScene 2015 and Washington DC Trip Report

As I fly back to California, I reflect on a fun and productive week and a half.

Last week I attended the 2015 SARScene in Prince Edward Island, Canada. On Thursday, I helped Norman Deschamps teach a workshop on SAR Explorer (SARX) which had students from multiple provinces. All students agreed they will use SARX for future operations and want to learn more about MapSAR and IGT4SAR for advanced mapping. Norm really broke it down and made it easy to follow, great course.

Then on Friday night, I helped "Team SAR" put together some solutions for combining an online / offline platform for hasty search response. This included a wireless server that can work without internet for signing in volunteers and providing them with a pdf map. When they return within range of the wifi router, it will automatically grab their gps track data. This solution was named "Blue Diamond" and created by Michael Coyle, Thierry Des Trois Maison, and Cameron Dykeman (the night shift). Agata Lawrynczyk built her first ever web mapping application (using ArcGIS Online Web AppBuilder) which contributed to MapSAR Online version 4. This app allows you to very quickly plot the initial planning point, draw an assignment, and print a map. Very simple, but very useful. In the end "Team SAR" won the hackathon!

The GitHub repositories for each solution are public here:

• Blue Diamond https://github.com/SARscene
• MapSAR Online https://github.com/pjdohertygis/MapSAROnline

MapSAR Online can produce a quick map and connect first responders with GIS Analysts working remotely.

After a traditional maritime "kitchen party" on Saturday night in PEI, I said farewell to my Canadian counterparts, and continued on to meet with colleagues from the National Alliance for Public Safety GIS Foundation in Washington D.C. There we met with representatives from the FEMA Urban Search and Rescue Team and the National Association for Search and Rescue. As an outcome, the NAPSG Search and Rescue Workgroup now has an informal partnership with FEMA and NASAR to share best practices and hopefully form a more strategic partnership in the future to support the development of standard operating guidelines, symbology tools, and training. 

Needless to say, it was a big month for GIS in SAR. More announcements to follow at SARGIS7, see some of you there!

SAR Mapping Course @SARSceneCanada

For those of you who are going to Canada's National Search and Rescue Conference in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island October 22-26, 2015, (SARScene) we just want to give you a heads up that there will be a workshop on Thursday, October 22 devoted to mapping and GIS specifically for search and rescue location data management. The course includes almost three hours of hands on tutorial with SAR Explorer (SARX), as well as demonstrations of using MapSAR and ArcGIS online for more collaborative SARGIS data management efforts. 

The description of the course, and a link to the course description on the SARScene 2015 website are at the end of the post. There are still about a half dozen spots available in the workshop, so if SAR GIS is your thing, don't miss out!

SAR Mapping - http://www.sarscene.ca/2015/training_e.asp
It is not too late to sign up for SARScene - Registration Page / Renseignements

In this course we will share best practices for using mapping technology and the power of geographic information for both short-term and long-term search operations. We will discuss three technology options in detail and you will learn some hands-on skills. This course is a great opportunity to learn how to use software that provides virtually everything a team needs to mange spatial information during a search operation. Even if your team has already chosen to use a different mapping platform, this session will still be valuable as a way to expand your knowledge on efficiently managing GIS (geographic information system) data during a search.

Instructors:

• Norman Deschamps - Search Manager and GIS Analyst, Tri-County Ground Search and Rescue Association, New Brunswick
• Paul J. Doherty, PhD - WiSAR Specialist, National Alliance for Public Safety GIS Foundation

Location: Rodd Charlottetown - Georgian Terrace
Time: 8:00 - 16:00

Norman Deschamps, creator of SAR Explorer

Paul Doherty, SARGIS enthusiasts

Au Québec: A good place to go missing

En français

On May 22nd, 2015 I had the pleasure of attending a meeting hosted by the Sureté du Québec and Université Laval CRG. The topic was using GIS for missing person search operations. We introduced ourselves and quickly began sharing how each agency is currently using mapping for planning and operations. There were over 30 people in attendance from multiple agencies and the faculty at Université Laval. 

  

Our hosts for the meeting, Alain Croteau and Mir Abolfazl Mostafavi

Here is a quick overview of what was discussed.

Software

It seems many teams were using Touratech for a long time but realized they needed to expand their capabilities because they could not load up-to-date base data into this package. They have since begun integrating with ArcGIS Desktop loaded up with minimum essential datasets.

Here is a short list of the software agencies are currently using.

• ArcGIS Explorer Desktop
• JMap
• Garmin Basecamp
• Touratech
• MapSource
• ArcGIS Desktop
• Google Maps / Earth
• Bing
• EasyGPS
• DNR Garmin

Workflows 

Here are the most commonly discussed workflows.

• Printing Maps
• Displaying Basemaps and Base Data (Doris Poulin, Sgt Surete de Quebec had a very impressive minimum essential dataset all stored locally using ArcGIS Explorer Desktop).
• Editing Incident Data (Initial Planning Point, Clues, Sectors, Assignments, Search Area)
• Downloading GPS Tracks

Spatial Analysis

This, for me, was the most interesting part of the discussion. Here are two projects that were discussed.

Estimating probability of area for missing persons with Alzheimer’s (Khaled Belhassine, Alain Croteau, & Mir Abolfazl Mostafavi)

• A GIS model that will produce a grid in which each intersection (decision node) will be given a variable value based on factual, personal, geographical and statistical information correlated by scientific knowledge. 
• This tool is still being tested but the preliminary results are promising.

Theoretical Search Area based on missing person profile and travel speed (Miguel Blanco)

• A GIS model that will produce isochrones for missing persons based on their profile or expected behavior. 
• Miguel is near completion of his MS Thesis and will be comparing techniques to Doherty et al. 2014 

Challenges

Despite great advances in the use of GIS in recent years, the group discussed some remaining challenges that I think we can all relate to.

• Sharing information between teams. They are only having meetings like this every few years and currently do not have a discussion portal.
• Training. While GIS software is getting easier to use, without specialists on each team, it is hard to get personnel trained and ready for incident response. 
• Internet Access. While 3G is becoming more widely available, teams still need to have all of the local data stored as minimum essential datasets and cannot yet rely on having an internet connection due to dead zones across the Province.
• Standards. They face the same common challenge of using multiple coordinate systems on incidents without necessarily having the capability of converting them “on the fly”.
• Emerging Technology. Advances in technology bring new tools but also new challenges. How do we adapt search planning and operations to live GPS tracking, UAV / drones, and even augmented reality?

Solutions

I think there are simple ways we can help the Province with some of their challenges.

• Join the Discussion! SAR-GIS Google Group
• Examples of Best Practices – Using GIS in WiSAR Free E-book
• Easy to Use Mapping Software- SAR Explorer
• GIS Software Packages – MapSAR and IGT4SAR
• Training 
• SAR Explorer – Manual & Videos
• MapSAR - Videos
• IGT4SAR - Videos

Also, here is a link to my presentation: http://arcg.is/1dwm0xM 

Special thanks to Pierre and Guillaume from Esri Canada for being there to answer questions and remind the agencies that their volunteers can get access to Esri software through the Esri Canada Non-Profit Organization Program. 

Overall, I am extremely impressed with the widespread use of GIS for search operations in Québec. I am especially excited about the partnership forged between the Université de Laval and Sureté du Québec. I hope that all in attendance know they are welcome to post questions to the SARGIS Group and will continue to share their techniques with the rest of the community. 

Merci à Alix pour la traduction

Isochrones produces by Miguel Blanco's travel cost model

Search and Rescue GIS Resources for Canada

After our recent MapSAR Training event at SARScene Canada 2013, Rick Laing of Ridge Meadows SAR, Elaine Girrior of Yellowknife SAR, and Peter Devanney of SAR Global 1 agreed to put together a shortlist of resources to start discussion and establish SARGIS collaboration across Canada. Here is what we have put together (this information may be useful even if your response area is outside of Canada).

Basemaps

With regards to basemaps there are many resources available to you already while connected to the internet. For instance, below is a map of all of the Community Maps Program participants who adding even more detail to the World Topographic basemaps. Also within ArcGIS Online and ArcGIS Desktop you have access to the basemap produced by the Open Street Map program. 

View Larger Map

To open these in ArcMap simply use the add basemaps function...

Here is a snapshot of some highly detailed data for Coquitlam 

Base Data

There is a whole section about how to organize your Minimum Essential Data in the Using GIS for Wildland Search and Rescue textbook (free download) and also in an earlier blog post "Pre-planning is half the battle". Base data can be tricky for new GIS users because these datasets tend be rather scattered across the internet and are hard to track down if you do not already work with a GIS Specialist. But we thought we would point out some Canada-specific data sources for all of you here.  

• Search ArcGIS Online 
• GeoGratis Prepackaged data sets (geodatabase by data type / Province)
• GeoGratis Geospatial Data Extraction tool
• GeoGratis CanVec Vector Data
• GeoGratis Toporama Topographic Maps 
• Centre for Topographic Information vector data ftp site
• Centre for Topographic Information elevation data ftp site
• GeoBase Web Mapping Service (adding WMS to ArcGIS Desktop) 
• MapTown Topographic Maps (not free)
• Quebec 1:20,000 Topo  (not free)

In many cases this will require you to download the data in various formats, unzip the data, add it to your map, and style it appropriately. 

Creating a layer package clipped for your specific area is a great way to keep these data portable and organized. When you unpack them they keep your geography and symbology and can be stored locally, on a portable drive, and ArcGIS Online.

ArcGIS Desktop for Nonprofit Organization Program by Esri Canada. Go to the website and Request Application for Membership

• $100 for ArcGIS Desktop (administrative fee)
• Designed for small ground SAR organizations in Canada 
• Organization can not be a Nationwide and/or Government owned agency
• Community Based Non Profit Volunteer Organization (with or without a CRA#)
• Must be associated with SARVAC, CASARA, or Northwest Territories
• CRA Charity registration number - not needed, simply note your relationship with SARVAC

Download MapSAR template for ArcGIS Desktop from www.mapsar.net

MapSAR is a free tool that runs with ArcGIS 10, 10.1, and 10.2 to store geospatial information, enabling SAR maps to be generated, stored, and printed quickly so that search teams can get out the door faster to look for the missing person.

Join our Discussion Group!

A group for National Park Rangers, Sheriffs, Mountain Rescue Associations and other emergency service people to discuss and help others use and implement GIS (Geographic Information Systems) technology in SAR (Search and Rescue), emergency and day to day operations. Central to our group’s goals is to make GIS techniques and technologies more accessible to non-specialists. Towards this end, we have continued to explore techniques and technologies that can create a more streamlined workflow and effective situational awareness when using GIS. 

What's next?

From here we hope the real discussions can begin. 

• Should there be a Canada SARGIS User Group? 
• Where will the next MapSAR Training be? 
• How can base data and even pre-planned operational data be stored and shared for teams to utilize (see example)?
• How do I meet local GIS Specialists and work with agencies already using GIS in my area? 

In the meantime, please do visit the NAPSG MapSAR and IGT4SAR for online training videos and stay informed via the SARGIS Discussion Group. Don just uploaded a video that highlights the importance of minimum essential datasets and breaks down some GIS basics here in this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qdOM9RsQ1ZI

Let's continue the discussion and collaborate around this topic.