DisastersNASA, DHS to demonstrate disaster rescue tool
NASA and DHS are collaborating on a new radar device which detects heartbeats of victims trapped in wreckage. The device, known as the Finding Individuals for Disaster and Emergency Response (FINDER), can locate individuals buried under as much as thirty feet of crushed materials, hidden behind twenty feet of solid concrete, or from a distance of 100 feet in open spaces.
NASA and DHS are collaborating on a new radar device which detects heartbeats of victims trapped in wreckage. The agencies will demonstrate and discuss the device at 10:30 a.m. EDT Wednesday, 25 September, at the Virginia Task Force 1 Training Facility at 9850 Furnace Road in Lorton, Virginia.
A NASA release reports that the device, known as the Finding Individuals for Disaster and Emergency Response (FINDER), can locate individuals buried under as much as thirty feet of crushed materials, hidden behind twenty feet of solid concrete, or from a distance of 100 feet in open spaces.
The latest prototype incorporates a variety of technological improvements recommended by emergency responders. NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, California, developed FINDER in conjunction with DHS’ Science and Technology Directorate (S&T).
Participants in the demonstration are:
— Jim Lux, FINDER task manager, Communications Tracking and Radar Division, JPL
— Michael Schaff, chief, Virginia Task Force 1
— Richard R. Bowers Jr., chief, Fairfax Fire and Rescue Department, Fairfax County, Va.
— John Price, program manager, First Responders Group, DHS Science and Technology Directorate
If you are interested in attending the event, contact John S. Verrico, chief of media relations for DHS’s Science and Technology Directorate, at john.verrico@dhs.gov or 202-254-2385.
