From the monthly archives: November 2011

Notes from the 8th Annual Summit on Emergency & Disaster Planning

by adam on November 24, 2011 · No Comments

I had the pleasure of attending the 8th Annual Summit on Emergency & Disaster Planning for Colleges, Universities, and K-12 Schools at the Holiday Inn Yorkdale in Toronto.  This two day conference was an excellent opportunity to listen, learn, and mingle with Authorities, Professionals, and Technical Partners whose focus is to keep your campuses safe and secure across North America.

Don’t be negligent.

Update your emergency communication infrastructure.

While the focus is security, the summit covers a breadth of topics from how privacy can coexist with security, to real-world examples of lockdowns due to shooters on campus, to crime prevention through environmental design.  Eric Roher, Partner at Borden Ladner Gervais, LLP touched on the recent amendments to Bill 168 in Ontario and the consequent obligations that school boards face today when implementing policies to deal with violence and harassment at school.  Your new programs for dealing with violence and harassment in the workplace should:

a)    include measures and procedures to control the risks identified in the assessment of your workplace as likely to expose a worker [student, faculty, or staff] to physical injury;

b)   include measures and procedures for summoning immediate assistance when workplace violence occurs or is likely to occur;

c)    include measures and procedures for workers to report incidents of workplace violence to the employer or supervisor;

d)   set out how the employer will investigate and deal with incidents or complaints of workplace violence; and

e)    include any prescribed elements.

Businesses are held more accountable than ever for keeping their premises safe for their occupants.  As a socially responsible organization, you may want to go through points a)-e) above and consider whether you have the systems in place to quickly message out and receive messages in if an emergency were to take place on your campus.

Mass Notification System

One step in the right direction

Two gentlemen that touched on this topic were Medicine Hat College’s Rodger Sloan, Environmental Health and Safety Director and Siemens representative Dan Bilodeau.   Dan oversees Business Development for Siemens Emergency Communication Systems and Mass Notification Systems (MNSs) in their Technologies Division and together with Rodger discussed the recent implementation of Sygnal, Siemen’s Mass Communication System at Medicine Hat College.  Siemens Sygnal Mass Notification System leverages Siemens appliances, software and industry partners to offer multiple layers to communicate to your campus community inside, outside, and by their side.  The biggest takeaway from this presentation was the importance of having a centralized network-operating centre where information can be sent out and received.  For example, fire experts now recommend campuses also include voice evacuation in their new fire alarm systems to provide mass notification capabilities.[1] The reasons for including a voice component are fairly straightforward: it’s no longer appropriate for an alarm system to only set off strobes and sirens indicating people in a building should evacuate. Now, these systems must be able to direct building occupants on what to do and where to go during a multitude of potential emergencies.  MNS’s link existing infrastructure, such as, voice systems, LED signage, and local area networks to help get a message out to the campus community during an emergency.

Broad emergency communication modalities are required to ensure that information is not siphoned off from its source, while an emergency is in progress. MNS’s can usually introduce the level of interoperability necessary to ensure a message gets out; however, the systems used today typically provide a one-to-many top down approach to sharing information (from campus security to students, faculty and staff).  There is a failure to leverage the collective information of the campus community, especially while a threat is at large on campus.  How can we preserve our connection and the flow of information with the campus community after a mass communication?  What tools can encourage a proactive involvement of the collective community in resolving the emergency?

Guardly

Leveraging new technology to improve emergency communications.

Guardly believes that there is value in using smartphone technology to help keep the flow of information open while an emergency is taking place on campus.   We believe the reason you’re code-blue emergency posts are underutilized are not due to a lack of criminal offences on campus (there were over 36,167 in 2009[2]), but instead a lack of accessibility to campus security.  In fact, there is wide debate in the community whether these posts remain on campus merely to provide security theatre.  We’re not recommending that you replace your existing systems.  Quite the opposite: in some cases layering in additional communication modalities can drastically increase the integrity of your existing campus safety model.  Deploying multiple modes will help to ensure the strengths of one solution compensate for the weaknesses of others.

There is no “one size fits all” solution to campus safety as many students, faculty and staff have different habits and routines in how they use and interact on campus.  Therefore, there is no easy way to predict in what way an individual on campus will access campus security.  Flexibility must be a key ingredient in order for campus security to remain accessible.   Having a mobile strategy incorporated into your safety model is a natural extension to consider.  More than 70% of students currently use smartphones on campus.[3] Smartphones have the ability to virtualize and mobilize the functionality of the code-blue emergency phone, while adding features of voice conferencing, text-based messaging (instant messaging), and real-time location tracking using built in GPS.  Most importantly, providing this tool to the campus community allows the collective community to proactively provide feedback to the university when a campus is at risk.  Harvesting first level information in real-time regarding a security threat is one of the most effective ways to quickly get from mass notification to resolution.

Safety on campus should be a cooperative effort of students, faculty, staff and visitors.  All of us must assume responsibility for our own personal safety and contribute to the well being of the collective campus community.  It was Mark Allen, National Trainer at Canadian Centre for Threat Assessment and Trauma Response, who posed the question early on in the event:

“Would your students be able to easily access campus security if a shooter came on your campus in the next 5 minutes?”

Most importantly, would your campus security be able to manage all the calls?  At some point you’ll be tasked with figuring out these questions and when the time comes to make your 5- to 10-year plan we ask that you consider a mobile strategy as an additional component that can help keep your campus community safe.

About Guardly

Guardly is a platform for emergency communication that facilitates rapid social, mobile and location-aware responses to calls for assistance. Guardly’s mobile app for smartphones empowers its users by providing one-touch access to their safety network. Simply launching Guardly on a smartphone will instantly identify a user’s location and alert family, friends, campus security (at schools that have joined its Safe Campus Program) and 9-1-1 that they are having an emergency. 

About the Guardly Safe Campus Program

Guardly’s Safe Campus program acts to virtualize students’ smartphones into mobile code-blue emergency phones, which are generally found around campus, and allows campus security teams to track the real-time location of callers and communicate by voice or text. Safe Campus also provides the ability to manage multiple calls for assistance at the same time. For more information on how to bring Guardly to your campus please visit our Guardly Safe Campus Program website.

 

 

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Tutorial: How Guardly Improves Location Finding

by josh on November 6, 2011 · No Comments

For many Americans and Canadians, the ability to call 911 for help in an emergency is one of the main reasons they own a mobile phone. In the US, the number of 911 calls placed by people using wireless phones has significantly increased in recent years. It is estimated that about 70 percent of 911 calls are placed from wireless phones, and that percentage is growing.

First, let’s understand the problem.

The FCC’s concern with mobile location detection

“While wireless phones can be an important public safety tool, they also create unique challenges for emergency response personnel and wireless service providers. Since wireless phones are mobile, they are not associated with one fixed location or address. While the location of the cell site closest to the 911 caller may provide a general indication of the caller’s location, that information is not usually specific enough for rescue personnel to deliver assistance to the caller quickly.”

Source: http://www.fcc.gov/guides/wireless-911-services

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has adopted rules aimed at improving the reliability of wireless 911 services and the accuracy of the location information transmitted with a wireless 911 call; however, even with Enhanced 9-1-1 (E911) Phase II, location accuracy is not very precise — especially when in urban centres. E911 Phase II mandates that location accuracy be within 300 meters, and be transmitted to 911 within six minutes of a request by a public service answering point (PSAP). That’s a long time!

How Guardly Improves Location Finding
First and foremost, Guardly uses GPS and WiFi hotspot lookups to give you the most accurate location readings. It will use Assisted-GPS (AGPS) as a back-up system, when GPS is not available. Beyond on-device sensors, Guardly allows you to configure predefined locations and manually confirm your location at any time.

Configure Guardly Locations
Guardly helps you to predefine a number of locations in your profile, along with some additional information that can be valuable to responders. Locations such as home, work, cottage, partner’s house and hotel can provide meaningful context to responders when your location becomes available on the map. You can add additional details such as suite/room numbers and buzzer/access codes — to further improve accessibility by your responders.

Guardly Location Confirm
During an emergency, if the Guardly app detects that your location accuracy is off by more than 50 meters, it will ask you to manually confirm your location for your responders. This is as simple as dragging and dropping a pin on a map. Your location will be transmitted as a confirmed location, which is extremely valuable.

By including these additional features, Guardly allows your responders to call 911 on your behalf and relay time-sensitive rescue information more reliably. When Next Generation 9-1-1 (NG9-1-1) becomes available, Guardly will be ready and willing to send your information to the 911 authority as soon as we know you make a confirmed 911 call requesting for their assistance. However, a functional and nationwide NG9-1-1 infrastructure is still a few years away.

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Tutorial: Completing your Guardly Profile

by josh on November 6, 2011 · No Comments

Once an emergency has happened, it’s easy to look back and say “I should have been more prepared.” Guardly helps you prepare for emergencies by setting up effective groups, running practice simulations and ensuring that you have a complete profile.

Your Guardly Profile is an opportunity to disclose important information about yourself that will be made available to your responders in case of emergency.

Here are a few pointers:

Photo
If you believe the saying, “A picture is worth a thousand words.” — start off by capturing and uploading a photo of yourself.

Contact Details
Even though Guardly will connect you with your responders, be sure to include your contact information, including up-to-date telephone numbers and email address. Once an emergency has ended, it is common for responders to want to get in contact with you however possible.

Physical and Medical Information
Guardly allows you to share your physical information such as eye color, hair color, height, weight and blood type — information that is important to quickly disseminate in cases of kidnappings or amber alerts. For people with medical concerns and conditions, your Guardly Profile can store information about known medical conditions, medications and allergies as well as your doctor’s name and phone number and your insurance plan and policy number.

Remember: In an emergency, it’s imperative that your Guardly Groups have access to your personal information that can prove beneficial in an emergency. If your emergency is a medical event, these details are extremely important for paramedics and other rescuers to know in case they need to administer new drugs on-site. So please be proactive and keep your safety group informed. Be sure to review your profile every three months to ensure it remains accurate.

 

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Why Realtors Need to Keep Safety Top of Mind

by luke on November 1, 2011 · No Comments
When we think about dangerous professions and potential safety risks at work, real estate agents do not often appear high on the list. However, just like the student walking home late at night, the corner store clerk in a notoriously unsafe part of town, or the social worker meeting clients with criminal records, real estate agents get into unfamiliar situations in unfamiliar places, which greatly decreases their safety. 

What’s been happening?
2011 has been a particularly dangerous year for real estate agents: the number of assaults, murders and robberies committed against Realtors is at an unseen high, according to a Realtor Safety Report published by AGBeat. Statistics show that over 70% of attacks were conducted against women, but both genders are at high risk when working alone. The majority of attacks also occurred outside urban areas, and although the most common intent of the assailants was robbery, a strikingly high 70% of attacks ended in murder. Another interesting finding was that the most attacks occurred on Thursday and Friday afternoons, rather than evenings or weekends.

Why Target Realtors?
There are several factors behind crimes against real estate agents and property. The primary part of a realtor’s job involves meeting with new people in new places, and the uncertainty adds to the element of risk in a realtor’s job. The economic situation and the high number of foreclosures across the United States has led to an increase in squatters, poverty, and crime. A realtor’s smiling face on a billboard represents the image of financial and social success, while an expensive car and suit effectively makes an agent an easily identifiable target.

How can Realtors stay safe?
Guardly recommends that real estate agents prepare for the risks and dangers associated with their profession. In addition to being aware of the possibility of assault, we strongly advise watching for suspicious activity – Realtors should always be writing down license plates of cars parked near empty houses, or checking a property in advance to ensure there aren’t any squatters. Be cautious and use a buddy system by attending showings in pairs, and make sure a colleague or family member knows where you are in case something happens. Finally, keep yourself safe with a personal safety device or smartphone application such as Guardly, which will allow you to communicate with emergency personnel, co-workers, friends, and family instantly in an emergency. Stay Safe!

Take a look at how Guardly is working with Realtors to promote safety with our Safe Realtor Program.

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