By Dennis Wolf
The fire service is on the cusp of an electronic frontier in the use of concepts such as eCommerce and eBusiness to create a new way of providing traditional fire services. The news media and many others call the current era the “Information Age.” However, what good is all of the “information” if you do not use it to improve services to the public? The Internet provides a global network that links people all over the world. It is possible to send an e-mail to a friend in Japan in a few seconds. Yet, if the house around the corner from the fire station catches on fire, it can take three or more minutes before the dispatcher notifies firefighters to respond to the fire. Obviously, there exists an untapped potential for the use of the Internet and even yet-to-be developed technology to improve the delivery of services and information to the public.
As of June 1997, 73.6 million households subscribed to cable TV or another multichannel video programming service, according to the Federal Communications Commission. This number means that just more than 70 percent of all American households with televisions have cable TV. Internet access is available on many cable TV systems. Many local phone companies offer dial-up and broadband Internet access. The city of Germantown, Tennessee, is developing the concept of a citywide wireless Internet access system. The concept includes small wireless Internet transceivers mounted on city infrastructure (traffic signal mast arms and street light poles) all over the city. The system will provide wireless Internet access to homes and businesses and to devices ranging from desktop computers to personal digital assistants (PDAs).
Homes will become “technology friendly” in the future. People want the benefits of electronic entertainment, instant access to information, and the ability to quickly communicate with family and friends. These needs will drive the installation of “electronic infrastructure” in homes. In an article by Bill Gates from MicroSoft entitled, “Prepare today for homes of the future,” which appeared on the Web site americanbuilders.com, he states, “The era of home automation is about to arrive, starting with ‘data connectivity’—the sharing of information among tools of various kinds.” Household appliances will “talk” to each other. A company called Cable Television Laboratories Inc. is working on solving problems with ubiquitous computer technology in homes. One concept involves moving information around within the home, referred to as “in-home transport”; the other is the provision of a broadband “media access point” network interface for the home. A company called iCEBOX, LLC, sells a Web-enabled product called iCEBOX (it is designed for the kitchen) that offers features such as e-mail, a TV with DVD player, and home video monitoring capability.
Why are technology friendly homes important for the fire service? All model building codes require homes to be equipped with smoke detectors. Some model codes require the interconnection of all smoke detectors so that if a smoke detector in the basement goes off, all of the smoke detectors in the home will sound an alarm. Some communities require built-in fire protection, such as residential sprinkler systems, in addition to the smoke detectors. These are all good ideas, but they stop short of doing what is important—automatically summoning the fire department. Many homes have alarm systems to do this, but the alarm systems are prone to frequent false alarms.
THE MANY USES OF eFIRE
The most promising method of improving the delivery of fire services is to include an eFire interface in every home. The fire department could deliver fire safety programming to the home’s TV based on the ages of the occupants. When the fire alarm system activates, the alarm system could transmit real-time data to the dispatch office, including interior ambient conditions and possibly a picture from a camera in the home (mounted in a common-use area such as the kitchen). The dispatcher would customize the response of fire apparatus based on these data. If the interior temperature is normal and the camera does not show smoke in the structure, one engine could be dispatched to check the home. The reduced response is safer for firefighters and the public (no speeding fire trucks) and less costly for the fire department. If the interior temperature is high, the dispatcher could send additional fire apparatus on the first alarm. EMS responses could be custom tailored using the eFire interface.
As more appliances become “smart” with the integration of computer interface capability, it may be possible for an appliance that begins to fail to activate the home’s fire alarm. As an example, if a TV set were to overheat, a rate-of-rise detector built into the chassis would detect the rise in temperature and signal the home’s fire alarm system to activate.
One eFire application is to install a tamper-resistant barcode at the fire department’s primary access point on every commercial building in the community. Firefighters could scan the barcode on arrival for any reason: an inspection, a medical call, or a fire call. The computer would read the barcode and pull up the record for that building. All of the information for that building (prefire plans, inspection reports, floor plans, permits, haz-mat information, previous calls, emergency contact information) would be available to the firefighters on handheld PDAs or on mobile data terminals in the cab of the fire engine. The fire department computer would use this information to initiate an NFIRS report that would be waiting for the firefighters to complete when they arrived back at the station. The computer would also use information in the database to generate inspection schedules and to send notices to businesses when it is time to renew a permit.
Another idea is to place microchips in turnout equipment. The microchip would carry important personal information about the person to whom the gear was assigned (name, age, etc.). Temperature sensors built into the chip would record the highest temperature the gear was exposed to at each fire, assisting fire administrators in determining if the equipment was compromised. The chips would function as a personal accountability system, too. The incident commander would have a proximity scanner that read the chip as the firefighter passed by the command post. A scanner in the rehab sector would record when a firefighter entered and left rehab. The incident commander would have a record of when each firefighter arrived and how much time each firefighter spent inside the building.
You could install a locator device (a GPS receiver would probably not work, since most buildings block the satellite signal) on each self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA). The device would transmit data to the command post. The incident commander would know the location of the firefighter, the ambient temperature as measured at the SCBA, the amount of air inside the air tank, and the breathing rate of the wearer.
Inventory control is another example of how eFire can be used. The fire department would tag office supplies, station supplies, and other items with barcodes or microchips. Consumable items would receive barcodes; reusable items would receive chips. An employee would scan the barcode or chip when he used an item. The fire department computer would track usage and automatically reorder supplies when needed.
All new fire apparatus have computers that monitor the engine and drivetrain of the truck, but a computer and microchip installed in the truck could monitor other functions. Scanners located above the apparatus bay doors would log the movement of the apparatus as it left and returned to the station. When the apparatus returned to the station, a telemetry system would connect the truck to the fire department computer system, and the information contained in the truck’s computer would download automatically to the vehicle maintenance shop. eFire would improve fire apparatus maintenance by using the information from each vehicle to schedule maintenance only when needed. Shop personnel could monitor items such as fuel consumption and oil usage to spot potential problems and make repairs before the problem caused major damage. An interface between the computer in the fire station and the computer-aided dispatch system would calculate turnout time to assist fire administrators in monitoring performance. The system would also generate reports scheduling the inspection and maintenance of equipment carried on the trucks. Benefits include better maintained apparatus and equipment, lower maintenance costs, and solid data fire administrators will use when making decisions on service levels, budgets, and apparatus and equipment replacement schedules.
Many colleges offer fire service degrees online, but few cities actively encourage or support employees who wish to pursue a college degree. My department offers tuition assistance for job-related courses but does not provide Internet access in the stations to help employees access courses while at work. A futuristic eFire application would connect every fire station in the country (why not the world, except for the language barrier?) on a Web-based fire network. This network would be the single portal for everything in the fire service, from e-mail to fire news to continuing education courses to reference and resource material to college degrees. The capabilities of this system would be available to all firefighters using wireless technology and PDAs.
WILL THE FIRE SERVICE EMBRACE THE TECHNOLOGY?
Concerning eFire, I see two big questions. First, will the fire service respond to this opportunity to reinvent service delivery; and second, will the fire service even recognize the trend?
There is a saying that the fire service is “200 years of tradition unimpeded by progress.” Firefighters fought switching from horses to gasoline engines. When self-contained breathing apparatus was introduced, firefighters refused to wear it. Computer technology is a low priority for many departments as they struggle for funds to provide suppression and EMS services. Many firefighters are reluctant to learn to use the computer for any reason, and most firefighters have no interest in a college degree.
Finally, the fire service is not a Web-based business. Firefighters deliver most fire services in person. Fire service information can be delivered over the Web, so the fire service should focus on becoming a business that uses the Web. Based on conversations with my peers and my personal observations, I do not see the fire service rushing to embrace this concept, so eFire’s time may not have come yet.
DENNIS WOLF is chief and a 25-year veteran of the Germantown (TN) Fire Department. He is a Tennessee EMT-P and Fire Officer I. He has a bachelor’s degree in fire administration and is a graduate of the National Fire Academy’s Executive Fire Officer program.
