S&T-Developed Tech Supports Hurricane Dorian Recovery Operations

The Department of Homeland Security’s Science and Technology Directorate deployed various tools based on internet of things and automated technology to help communities impacted by Hurricane Dorian. 

William Bryan, acting undersecratry for science and technology at DHS, wrote in a blog post published Monday that the hurricane warranted a “whole-of-government response” to support emergency response efforts in the Bahamas and prepare coastal communities such as those in Florida and North Carolina.

S&T-developed technologies used during recovery operations include a situational awareness tool for tracking first responders and a hurricane evacuation planning platform that runs on a web interface. The directorate also developed a forecasting tool for coastal flooding and storm surges, IoT-based flood sensors and the Single Automated Business Exchange for Reporting designed to provide real-time information on business disruptions and restoration efforts.

According to Bryan, the tools can be used for a range of future emergency response activities such as locating survivors, coordinating recovery teams and sharing information on hurricane behavior, dam failures and inland flooding.