Objective
To research the feasibility of developing a comprehensive support system to aid the management of emergency situations, in particular the management of off-site emergency evacuation.
The support system envisaged would be used primarily by the operators of a chemical facility and by emergency services personnel.
In the first instance the support system would need to be used in a "planning mode" so that those devising evacuation strategies could test a number of options by varying parameters such as weather, population densities, response times etc. The knowledge from these trial examinations could possibly be stored in a knowledge base so that some primary conditions related to evacuation could be readily available.
To be of maximum benefit the system must be able to predict the areas around the facility which will be subjected to greatest threat at the time of the incident and to advise emergency personnel of groups of persons most a risk. Such a "real time/predictive advisory system" would need to incorporate models relevant to people movement, chains of communications dispersion of hazard, knowledge of released substance chemical characteristics etc.
This will result in the production of a prototype software system that will evaluate the spread and extent of hazardous phenomena generated by possible accidents and map these parameters onto the surrounding geographical and social features. The system will then evaluate numbers of persons at risk and the demands what would be placed on the risk aversion measures that are available such as evacuation facilities. Finally the system will evaluate the effectiveness of the risk aversion facilities and policies in minimising harm to persons.
Fields of science
Topic(s)
Call for proposal
Data not availableFunding Scheme
CSC - Cost-sharing contractsCoordinator
BD Bradford
United Kingdom