The Search and Rescue Project

•Topic: SU-DRS02-2018-2019-2020 – Technologies for first responders

•Call for proposal: H2020-SU-SEC-2019

•Grant agreement ID: 882897

•Total budget: € 7.890.585

•Funding Scheme: RIA – Research and Innovation Action

•Project’s starting date: 1 July 2020

•Project’s end date: 30 June 2023

•Coordinator: NATIONAL TECHNICAL UNIVERSITY OF ATHENS – (NTUA) Greece

•Cordis Link: https://cordis.europa.eu/project/id/882897 (from various practitioner’s organisations, civil society, universities and research centres, as well as industry organisations and SMEs)

The S&R consortium is comprised by twenty-eight (28) partners from twelve (12) European countries.

•Apart from earthquakes that usually result to catastrophic structural collapses, with many people entrapped or killed there are also other causes that may result into a building’s collapse, such as an accidental explosion or a terrorist attack in public areas or critical infrastructures.

• Moreover, natural disasters like earthquakes may trigger technological disasters, such as industrial chemical release or even fires; this dynamic or “domino effect”, as it is called may pose tremendous risks to the countries and communities and hence it is a great challenge to cope with by the first responders and relevant organizations of civil protection.

•First responders and rescuers need specialized instrumentations, available to all times, easily accessible that meet stringent requirements in terms of detection accuracy, quick localization, and reduction of false alarms. 

UC 1 Victims trapped under rubble Italy

UC2: Plane crash, mountain rescue, non-urban (Greece)

UC3: Earthquake / heavy storms between Vienna Rail Station & Kufstein railway station heavy damages in the rail station
(Cross-border pilot, Austria-Germany)

UC4: Forest fire expanded and threat to industrial zone (Greece)

UC5: Victims trapped under rubbles (France)

UC6: Resilience Support for Critical Infrastructures through Standardized Training on CBRN (Romania)

UC7: Chemical substances spill (Spain)

High-level User Requirements Identification Methodology

•Questionnaires to the end-users to identify Limitations, Shortcomings and Future needs. •The questionnaires were used to perform a gap analysis for the use of Chemical Search & Rescue tools:

          – Portable Membrane Inlet Mass Spectrometer (MIMS)

          – Rescue MIMS on Robotics

          – Six Gas HAZMAT Monitor with VOC detection for first responder •Community Resilience Gap Analysis was performed:

          – Literature

          – Legislative / regulatory / standardisation issues

          – Case Study analysis

High-level User Requirements key findings

•Portable Membrane Inlet Mass Spectrometer (MIMS)

A Portable Membrane Inlet Mass Spectrometer (MIMS) is an indispensable support for the search of people trapped under rubble. •Rescue MIMS on Robotics

Unmanned systems with RESCUE MIMS keep the human rescue workers and K-9 dogs out of harm. This is especially important in earthquake response scenarios because “fatigue leads to injury”. •Six Gas HAZMAT Monitor with VOC detection for first responder

Best be wearable in a flap pocket & Connected to a Situational Awareness System with integrated platforms.

•Community Resilience Case Study – Success indicators

Combining Resources, as several actors involved, including professionals, volunteers and members of community, can make up for the lack of technologies or other resources.

Local Knowledge, as volunteers usually have a better knowledge of the disaster area.

Networking of the parties provided additional value by combining different training and experience on S&R operations, sharing knowledge, and also by resources.

Preparedness, Simulation Training Exercises.

Cost Reduction and Commitment volunteers.

•Tools Missing

Communication Technologies fast data transfer.

Equipment and Technology Limitations for the safety of dogs, to track dogs and the locations they already searched, need for drones sensors for new explosions.

•Improvements needed

– Unification of communication systems and unification of location and data management programmes.

– Separate radio communication frequency for the exchanges between teams.

– Cross-Compatible tracking technologies.

– Improvement and compatibility of personal protective equipment for chemical substances.

– Use of drones with more flight range.

– Artificial Intelligence to identify a person’s body or personal objects.

– Thermal cameras adapting to outside temperature.

– Triage sheets being available via telematics.