New Tools For This Hurricane Season
By: Christie Sutton
This year one of the most exciting
new technological devices that Emergency Disaster Services has acquired is the
SX1 GPS tracking unit made by Orbit One Communications. The SX1 allows us
to track the location of our deployable resources during response and recovery
operations. Each canteen, field kitchen, satellite communications unit
and various other disaster vehicles within the Southern Territory, is equipped
with the tracker. Nearly 300 units have been installed thus far and it is
revolutionizing the way the Army remains accountable for our assets.
The SX1 GPS tracking device is portable and lightweight, roughly 3" x 7" in
size, and is installed on the roof the unit being tracked. These
particular devices are programmed to give one standard location message each
day, and when the vehicle is in motion, the unit will give additional motion
messages every 30 minutes. On any given day, the exact location of a corps'
canteen or its path during service delivery can be tracked online. No
longer are the days of wondering if canteens have made it across the division
or territory to their deployment destinations.
Logging into an online system, each unit shows up on a map where detailed
street addresses are given as location pin points. The breadcrumbs
tracking feature allows the user to see where a unit has been during specific
time periods, giving a visual picture of the "breadcrumbs" track on a
map. Geofences may be built within the system and set to alarm the
user(s) via email or text message when a unit has either entered or left a
specific geographical boundary point.
Already this year the SX1 has been used to track the Army's response during
tornado touchdowns in AOK, ice storms in KTN and flooding in MWV. Not only are
corps officers given online viewing rights, but divisional and territorial
leadership have access as well. Externally, and when appropriate during
incidents, county emergency operations center officials may be given basic
viewing rights into the Orbit One system allowing them to record exact canteen
numbers and their respective service delivery locations. PIO's may use
the online system to share with media, while Army leadership may use the system
as a resource when communicating with donors.
Whatever the forecast for the 2009 hurricane season brings, "just remember
it will be a very bad and memorable hurricane season, even if there is a total
of only one Atlantic hurricane, if that one strikes your area" said Dr. Steve
Lyons of The Weather Channel. In preparation for a more effective and
efficient response from a logistical standpoint, whether it be for one
hurricane or many, the SX1 has put the Army on an entirely new level.
Instructions of how to log-in to the GPS
system:
web address: www.felixlive.com
organization: salvationarmy (caps sensitive)
user: GeneralView (caps sensitive)
password: Salvation1 (caps sensitive)
** THIS IS FOR
INTERNAL USE ONLY!!
Photo Caption 1:SX-US Southern Territory
Photo Caption 2:Canteen Tracking in NCV
Photo Caption 3:Atlanta Red Shield Canteen Resonse in Galveston
Photo Caption 4:Houston Geofence