If there is anything even slightly positive that comes from catastrophes like the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing, it may be the lessons learned that can be applied to future events.

A changing world was on full display in the immediate wake of the tragedy, as Boston, Massachusetts, special police forces scoured the streets in search of the bombing’s perpetrators. The Boston Police Department began using social media both to sift through text and photos for clues and to identify and correct misinformation from news sources and the public.

But there were also problems caused by the high-visibility response. Some individuals began falsely and publicly accusing other civilians with no real evidence. Another problem arose when Twitter users began publishing photos of law enforcement personnel searching for the bombers; however, because Boston police leaders were actively engaged in social media at the time, they noticed that trend and were able to ask the public to stop.

“People were posting pictures of SWAT team members in their neighborhoods,” recalled Mark Amann, a former Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) response and recovery officer. “They had to go on TV and tell people to stop tracking the movements of their officers.”¹

In a way, the 2013 bombing and the subsequent response illustrated both the benefits and risks of online social networks and an increasingly connected world for the law enforcement community. Even as these kinds of major emergencies are changing, so, too are the ways in which public safety professionals can respond.

Fortunately, tragic incidents like this one remain exceedingly rare—but they are on the rise. For example, FBI data show that active shooter incidents occurred 6.4 times each year between 2000 and 2006, but rose to 16.5 annually between 2007 and 2013. A total of 486 fatalities and 557 injuries were associated with those shootings during the more recent time period.²

Despite their rarity, the dangerous and high-profile nature of these more extreme emergencies demands that all police departments be prepared to respond. What’s more, it stands to reason that understanding and preparing for major emergencies will carry a trickle-down effect to every emergency—each and every one vitally important to the parties involved—that first responders face on a more regular basis.

SOCIAL MEDIA ON YOUR SIDE

Social media can be a major source of noise or distraction during an emergency. It can also be a lifeline for victims and even a tactical advantage for first responders. It all depends on how the police and public use it.

This is where a new training program called SimulationDeck can help. Amann, who is vice president and chief operations officer at Denver-based Nusura, Inc., which created the program, says that SimulationDeck helps police practice for emergencies with social media. “Every day there’s a new challenge. We noticed that in the preparation phase, there was no training [that] could provide a realistic level of pressure and crushing demands,” said Amann, who participated in the response and recovery efforts following 9/11 and Hurricane Katrina, as well as other disasters.³

Nusura and Simulation Deck are changing that. The program is a secure “playground” that works like a real simulation with social media. Using a department’s devices and software programs, SimulationDeck delivers alerts and needs based on a given scenario and monitors the players’ responses.

“How do you operationalize social media? It enhances how you allocate resources and respond, and understand how it’s affecting people,” Amann said. “You can practice the scenario where you’re getting 9,000 tweets an hour. What do you do when people are calling for rescue by Twitter, or bad guys are live blogging and video streaming their attack? Our trainees go through the social media channels and separate the signal from the noise, then use it to inform their tactical response decisions.”⁴

The training itself can also save money and time, as it occurs mainly online. “It saves money because you do it online rather than having to co-locate personnel,” Amman said. “It really enhances player engagement, too. People get burned out on regular exercises, but this gets people into the exercise.”⁵

LEARNING TRICKS, OLD AND NEW

Social media is certainly a new phenomenon on the law enforcement landscape, but police departments can also learn new methods to improve old practices and solutions.

Case in point: first-aid training. Shaking up a traditional area of education can make for a more efficient and effective experience. “Too many people going to calls would be standing over a person in distress on the ground [and] not knowing what to do,” said John Collie, president and CEO of Rescue 7 Inc., an Ontario company.⁶

Rescue 7, whose clients include the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, offer first-aid and emergency training via a combination of online testing and in-person exercises. “We do a lot of hands-on stuff,” Collie said. “We don’t let anyone sit in their seats for more than 20 or 30 minutes at a time. People learn better that way… It’s a blended program; part online and part hands-on in person. You can do the online component anytime, log in and out. It’s only five hours every three years in person, the rest is online.”⁷

THE RIGHT THING IN THE RIGHT PLACE

Having an effective piece of hardware in place before it’s needed for an emergency can make all the difference when the event is unfolding. In the case of major disasters, serious mechanical problems, and the like, a working communication system is an indispensable lifeline. If electrical or cellular signals are damaged, however, these communications systems can become unstable right when they are needed most.

For the 2015 race, Boston Marathon safety organizers addressed this potential problem with ICRI, a radio bridging device that can be connected with a number of different radios, telephones, and other communication vehicles to create a strong communications signal in the most adverse conditions.

“The great concern when you’re in-building communications during a disaster or active shooter is when radios go down,” said Seth Leyman, president of Communications-Applied Technology (C-AT), the Virginia company that manufactures ICRI. “[ICRI] can be brought online very quickly without any formal education on it.”⁸

ICRI does not require a power source, computer, or special training. It is small, compact, and easy to deploy when needed, Leyman noted. C-AT markets a line of ICRI and other devices to military as well as local and state public safety agencies. “[First responders are] trying to deal with going into structures blind or can only go a certain number of feet before they lose communications,” Leyman said. “The ICRI doesn’t depend on infrastructure. It doesn’t need the Internet or a power source outside of the AA batteries inside it, and those last 30 hours.”⁹

Rescue 7 does more than provide training; it also provides equipment. One of their most successful products is an automatic defibrillator, which sells for about $1,500 each and is monitored by the company, making it a type of “smart” AED.

“We put the AEDs in and we track them,” Collie said. “We let people know three months before the end of their battery life with an automated email.”¹⁰

Surveillance and unmanned robotic craft are taking on greater roles in emergency response and management. After the attacks of 9/11, Paul Madsen, an airline pilot, decided to get more serious about his hobby. That hobby was metalworking, and the serious result is Mobile Video Surveillance (MVS), a portable surveillance tool marketed by Madsen’s company, Virginia-based Venture Tec LLC.

“I was using radio-controlled helicopters and tall masts to obtain low-altitude photos for real estate companies,” Madsen recalled. “As security and video surveillance needs increased, I decided to design a mobile surveillance system that was comparatively low cost and lightweight… It is 80 pounds and can be rapidly deployed for tactical response, including for emergencies. Past uses include gas well emergencies; school shooting responses; campus security; bomb disposal situational awareness; outdoor event monitoring such as games, parades, marathons, [and] carnivals; and police tactical SWAT use.”¹¹

MVS and other tools have become more modular, making them easier to use and store, including items as basic as the stretcher. The QuikLitter, developed by Colorado company Rescue Essentials, is a lightweight stretcher than can hold up to 400 pounds. The Rescue Essentials online store also serves as a central stop for emergency equipment for law enforcement, emergency medical service providers, and other first responders. The site sells more than 1,000 different products, including everything from trauma kits to active shooter response tools.

Ideally, tragic events and emergencies like the Boston Marathon bombing, school shootings, and 9/11 wouldn’t occur at all. However, the next best thing is to ensure that first responders have the tools and services needed to provide an effective, efficient, and safe response. ♦

Notes:
¹Mark Amann (vice president and chief operating officer, Nusura, Inc.), telephone interview, April 23, 2015.
²J. Pete Blair and Katherine W. Schweit, A Study of Active Shooter Incidents in the United States Between 2000 and 2013 (Washington, D.C.: Texas State University, Federal Bureau of Investigation, 2014), http://www.fbi.gov/news/stories/2014/september/fbi-releases-study-on-active-shooter-incidents/pdfs/a-study-of-active-shooter-incidents-in-the-u.s.-between-2000-and-2013 (accessed May 13, 2015).
³Amann, telephone interview, April 23, 2015.
⁴Ibid.
⁵Ibid.
⁶John Collie (president and CEO, Rescue 7 Inc.), telephone interview, April 21, 2015.
⁷Ibid.
⁸Seth Leyman (president, Communications-Applied Technology), telephone interview, April 21, 2015.
⁹Ibid.
¹⁰Collie, telephone interview, April 21, 2015.
¹¹Paul Madsen (owner, Venture Tec LLC), telephone interview, April 23, 2015.

Please cite as

Scott Harris, “Learning from the Past Improves Emergency Management for the Future,” Product Feature, The Police Chief 82 (July 2015): 48–49.

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