Use technology to mobilise fire and rescue service resources

Fire control personnel should have access to systems to help identify the capabilities and location of fire and rescue service resources and specialist equipment; this will aid them when making decisions. When fire controls are busy and information is being gathered from numerous sources or multiple calls are being handled, fire control personnel may have to redeploy resources from one incident to another after carrying out a dynamic risk assessment of each call.

Mobilising systems can be configured to display predetermined attendances from based on the address-based gazetteer and incident types. Such systems, used in conjunction with an automatic vehicle location system (AVLS), can calculate travel times for resources based on location and availability. This provides fire control personnel with information to help determine the number and type of resources to mobilise, and the location of the nearest, most appropriate resources, including specialist equipment and operational managers.

Fire control personnel may reassess the proposed attendance if operational resources become available nearer to an incident, enabling a shorter response time and reducing vehicle movements.

Geographic information system (GIS)

Fire control personnel benefit from being able to clearly identify the caller, incident, resource, and, in some cases, risk information. The map-based visualisation of information provided by GIS helps them to make better-informed decisions.

When the location details for an incident are entered into a new incident form on the mobilising system (either automatically from EISEC or manually), the incident location can be dynamically displayed on the GIS. If there is any doubt or ambiguity about the information the caller is providing, fire control personnel can refer to the GIS map to obtain information about adjacent properties, streets and landmarks. This can be used to confirm the location of a caller and incident.

The GIS functionality in mobilising systems may be configured to provide fire control personnel access to risk information for specific locations. These systems may be used to plot information about:

• Temporary road closures
• Planned events
• Site-Specific Risk Information (SSRI)
• Hydrant data
• Tactical plans
• Control of Major Accident Hazards (COMAH) plans
• Incident cordons

Such information can aid mobilising decisions and may also be used to provide information to operational personnel.

It may also be possible to display the operational status of resources on GIS, providing fire control personnel with an overview of the availability of resources.

The systems may contain information regarding appropriate rendezvous points (RVPs), deployment points, launch sites or strategic holding areas (SHAs), or they may be used to identify suitable places if there are no pre-planned arrangements. Some mobilising systems enable fire control personnel to create an incident from the map and identify a rendezvous point, deployment point or launch site rather than selecting one from the gazetteer. This can provide useful information during larger incidents, for incidents in rural locations, on motorways and trunk roads, giving a more precise location to operational personnel.

Automatic vehicle location system (AVLS)

Many resources deployed by fire and rescue services now carry communication equipment that makes use of the global positioning system (GPS) to provide location details. They are usually referred to as AVLS. This location information can be displayed on the GIS in fire controls, enabling fire control personnel to confirm the locations of resources.

AVLS can provides the exact location of individual fire and rescue service vehicles, enabling the mobilising system to be configured to propose the nearest available resource that is appropriate to mobilise dispatch to an incident. Providing fire control personnel with information about the exact location of resources can improve efficiency and incident response times.

The system uses road network data to calculate the response times and can be configured based on:

• Resource capabilities or restrictions
• Current road conditions, such as average road speeds and known road closures
• Other restrictions, such as bridge height or weight

Attribute-based response

Mobilising systems may be configured to calculate the resources required for the safe resolution of incidents based on specific attribute types. This may include consideration of vehicle type and the equipment required. It may also include the number and availability of operational personnel.

For such systems to be effective, consideration should be given to the methods used to record the availability of resources.

Resource management systems

Fire control personnel make critical decisions involving the movements of operational personnel. Resource management systems may be used to assist when managing operational crewing and availability information. Such systems may be used to monitor the location and availability of operational resources and inform decision-making about their movement to maintain operational availability.

Different technologies may be used; however, consideration should be given to how they are integrated into the mobilising system, so that fire control personnel have accurate, up-to-date information when making decisions about the resources to mobilise to incidents. Effective integration of such technologies should help minimise manual intervention, reducing the potential for errors or misinterpretation, contributing to a quicker response.

Mobile data equipment

Mobile data equipment can be used to exchange information between fire control and operational personnel. Mobile data terminals (MDTs) enable real-time communication and data sharing, including availability status and operational crew details.

The information gathered during an emergency call, including the incident type and location, resources mobilised and whether people are at risk, can be sent to the MDT, so that it is available to operational personnel before they begin travelling to the incident. MDTs may also be used to share information such as incident updates and resource availability.

Mobile data equipment can also be used to provide access to premises-based risk information that operational personnel can view before they arrive at the incident.