{"id":260962,"date":"2019-08-13T07:09:51","date_gmt":"2019-08-13T14:09:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/?post_type=blog&#038;p=260962"},"modified":"2022-04-03T15:44:09","modified_gmt":"2022-04-03T22:44:09","slug":"swiftwater-rescue-team-see-with-augmented-reality","status":"publish","type":"blog","link":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/blog\/swiftwater-rescue-team-see-with-augmented-reality","title":{"rendered":"Augmented Reality Aids Nighttime Swiftwater Rescue"},"author":5352,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"sync_status":"","episode_type":"","audio_file":"","podmotor_file_id":"","podmotor_episode_id":"","castos_file_data":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","filesize_raw":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","itunes_episode_number":"","itunes_title":"","itunes_season_number":"","itunes_episode_type":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[211],"tags":[114612,165742,18732,375332],"industry":[],"esri-blog-category":[478522],"esri_blog_department":[478242],"class_list":["post-260962","blog","type-blog","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-public-safety","tag-augmented-reality","tag-fire-department","tag-navigation","tag-swiftwater-rescue","esri-blog-category-fire","esri_blog_department-public-safety"],"acf":{"video_source":"","video_start":"","video_stop":"","short_description":"The City of Johns Creek created an innovative augmented reality application to assist the fire department\u2019s river safety and rescue missions.","pdf":{"host_remotely":false,"file":"","file_url":""},"flexible_content":[{"acf_fc_layout":"sidebar","layout":"standard","image_reference":null,"image_reference_figure":"","spotlight_image":null,"section_title":"","spotlight_name":"","position":"Right","content":"Key Takeaways\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li>Augmented reality helps orient the user in challenging and disorienting conditions.<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Crafting a successful solution involves an understanding of objectives and operational conditions.<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Creative combinations of technology helped solve compounding challenges.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>","snippet":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"If you were blindfolded and dropped onto the banks of the Chattahoochee River near Johns Creek, Georgia, you might swear you were in the middle of nowhere. The Metropolitan River Protection Act, enacted in the 1970s, created an undisturbed vegetative buffer along an 84-mile-long section of the river, including the 14-mile stretch that forms the southern and eastern borders of the city. It feels like wilderness despite being part of Metro Atlanta.\r\n\r\nWater released upstream at the Buford Dam amplifies that wild river feeling. When cold water from the depths of Lake Lanier courses down the Chattahoochee River during daily releases, it causes rapids and a rise in surface levels by as much as 11 feet. This swift, cold water forms an ideal habitat for trout, but it can imperil people when they\u2019re caught off-guard by quickly changing conditions.\r\n\r\n\u201cThere\u2019s a website with a release schedule but if you didn\u2019t check that, it\u2019s pretty easy to be caught unaware,\u201d said Nick O\u2019Day, chief data officer at the City of Johns Creek, Georgia. \u201cOur fire department gets calls at all times of the day and night to make rescues.\u201d\r\n\r\nIn summer months, when the water temperature warms, river activity increases.\r\n\r\n\u201cIt\u2019s tubing season, and there\u2019s always a lot of activity from sports fishermen, so it\u2019s not uncommon for us to be called to the river weekly this time of year,\u201d said Lt. Aaron Roberts of the Johns Creek Fire Department, and a leader of the Swiftwater Rescue Team."},{"acf_fc_layout":"image","image":261072,"image_position":"center","orientation":"horizontal","hyperlink":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"Complicating the situation is the fact that there are few recognizable landmarks to determine locations while on the water. Dense riverbank vegetation makes spots along the river undistinguishable.\r\n\r\n\u201cThe problem that everybody has is that it\u2019s so heavily wooded that it\u2019s very easy to lose track of where you are,\u201d O\u2019Day said. \u201cThe fire department knows where they are at launch but as they move toward a landmark it\u2019s very easy to get disoriented.\u201d\r\n\r\nAlso, dam release times and volumes vary, which causes constantly changing conditions that make it tough for even the most experienced operator.\r\n\r\n\u201cWe have a few guys that know the ins and outs of the river because they\u2019re on it so often,\u201d Roberts said. \u201cHowever, knowing the river when it's low doesn\u2019t mean that they can operate with the same efficiency when it's high.\u201d\r\n\r\nAt low water levels, it\u2019s easy to see snags, sand bars and shoals. The fire department\u2019s river rescue boat is hardened to these conditions, with a rock-proof bottom and jet drive that can operate safely in just six inches of water. \u201cWhile we can slide across rocks and go over sandbars, we still want to avoid those areas because they can fling people from the boat,\u201d Roberts said."},{"acf_fc_layout":"sidebar","layout":"standard","image_reference":null,"image_reference_figure":"","spotlight_image":null,"section_title":"","spotlight_name":"","position":"Center","content":"<strong>Staying Safe on the River<\/strong>\r\n\r\nThose headed out to the Chattahoochee River can call ahead (770-945-1466) to learn when dam releases are scheduled. The fire department urges people to share plans with family and friends, letting someone know when you\u2019re expected to return. It also suggests that everyone have a personal flotation device and carry a cell phone in a waterproof bag. When on the river, it asks boaters to be aware of landmarks\u2014bridges, mile markers, and parks\u2014so that in the event of an emergency they can advise the 911 dispatcher of the last thing they saw and how long ago they saw it.","snippet":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"In addition to the physical obstacles, cold water mixing with warmer water can produce thick fog, and the air often fills with bugs.\r\n\r\n\u201cThe fog is thick enough that at times you cannot see the shore or make out stars in the sky,\u201d Roberts said. \u201cIt\u2019s hard to explain the thickness of the insects, we wear eye protection, and you definitely can\u2019t smile.\u201d\r\n\r\nThese compounding conditions cause frustration for first responders.\r\n\r\n\u201cIf we have a known location of somebody needing help but we can\u2019t see to get there, we\u2019re no help to that person,\u201d Roberts said.\r\n\r\n<strong>Augmented River Piloting<\/strong>\r\n\r\nThe City of Johns Creek set out to map a solution using <a href=\"https:\/\/github.com\/Esri\/AuGeo\">AuGeo<\/a>, an augmented reality application developed by Esri Labs. This software makes use of the location data that O\u2019Day stewards for the city within its geographic information system (GIS). He equipped an iPad with the software and overlaid the city\u2019s data at key points of interest. As they travel, firefighters can view the river through an iPad mounted to the boat to see key points in their field of view which helps to orient them.\r\n\r\n\u201cThey needed a heads-up display, because they\u2019re cruising down the river at 40 or 50 miles an hour,\u201d O\u2019Day said. \u201cThey don\u2019t have time to pan, zoom or scroll.\u201d"},{"acf_fc_layout":"youtube","youtube_video_url":"https:\/\/youtu.be\/M6pGxQ2QdeQ"},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"The solution also incorporates a night vision sensor fitted over the camera lens to deal with the darkness.\r\n\r\n\u201cIt\u2019s not just a matter of knowing the landmarks around you,\u201d O\u2019Day added. \u201cThe night-vision attachment we engineered cuts through the fog and darkness to show obstructions\u2014rocks, branches, logs\u2014as they speed toward their goal.\u201d\r\n\r\nThe rescue boat has powerful lights and a thermal imaging sensor, but the lights can\u2019t always cut through the fog and fog distorts the thermal imaging sensor. The night vision sensor and the augmented reality view provide a solution that works for the firefighters."},{"acf_fc_layout":"youtube","youtube_video_url":"https:\/\/youtu.be\/uwUOQCNNmmw"},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"\u201cWe took Nick [O\u2019Day] out on the river and showed him what we do, and he did the rest,\u201d Roberts said. \u201cThe operation is super simple, which is big for us. It doesn\u2019t take a techno-whiz or GIS specialist to figure it out.\u201d\r\n\r\nFor O\u2019Day, the key was to get inside the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/en-us\/industries\/needs\/operational-efficiency\">operational workflows<\/a> and find the most appropriate use of the technology. This way he was able to create an app designed specifically for what the rescue team is trying to do.\r\n\r\n<strong>Faster Response Times<\/strong>\r\n\r\nEveryone involved in the effort is focused on reducing danger on the river and providing help quickly. The app has been crucial to meeting these objectives.\r\n\r\n\u201cIt adds more situational awareness for the boat crew,\u201d O\u2019Day said. \u201cHopefully it eliminates guessing where they are and saves them minutes in their response times.\u201d\r\n\r\nAs important as it is to have an idea of where one is located on the river, it\u2019s critically important for those using the river to know the water release schedule and how long it takes to see a rise in the river where they are."},{"acf_fc_layout":"image","image":261142,"image_position":"center","orientation":"horizontal","hyperlink":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"\u201cOften times, people will get out in the river not knowing it will rise and they get stuck on a rock with swift water flowing around them,\u201d Roberts said. \u201cThe gratitude and relief they feel knowing they get to go home that night can be overwhelming for them and for us.\u201d\r\n\r\nThere are other times when the outcome is more tragic.\r\n\r\n\u201cAbout a year ago,\"\u00a0Roberts said. \"A teenager got swept up by a flood and his friend jumped in to save him.\u00a0Both drowned, and it was days before we found them. The families were worried that they got swept all the way to the Gulf. It was... closure for the family, but also sad.\u201d\r\n\r\nRiver safety and swiftwater rescue is a concern that goes beyond the city limits. The solution Johns Creek pioneered is being shared with other cities and agencies along the river including nearby fire departments, the National Park Service, and the Georgia Department of Natural Resources.\r\n\r\n\u201cWe\u2019re hoping that this prototype solution might help others,\u201d O\u2019Day said. \u201cThe more success we have with it, and the more we learn, the more we can share to raise the bar for everyone.\u201d\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\nLearn how public safety professionals uses <a href=\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/en-us\/solutions\/industries\/public-safety\/overview\">GIS to monitor situations and make adjustments<\/a> to keep a community safe\u00a0and\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/en-us\/see\/overview\">see what others can\u2019t<\/a>."}],"references":null},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v25.9 (Yoast SEO v25.9) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Swiftwater Rescue Mission Improves Using 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