Better emergency response through satellite telecoms

 

When emergency teams are well informed and governments can coordinate their efforts, lives and property can be saved.

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The Health Early Warning System (HEWS), a project supported by the European Space Agency (ESA), is intended to bring this benefit to Europe.

Extreme natural phenomena like tsunamis, earthquakes and hurricanes have featured prominently in the news; so too has the rapid spread of new diseases such as SARS and avian flu.

By identifying and mapping occurrences of these problems sooner, agencies can relieve suffering more quickly and contain a situation more efficiently.

That is why ESA is supporting HEWS, which will improve the performance of emergency service end-users.

The project offers these users a wider, real-time perspective of events and how to manage them.

It integrates knowledge of a particular threat or disease and brings it to remote areas, even if they are in an extreme state of disorder, and helps with logistical support and reduces the need to carry large amounts of heavy equipment to trouble spots.

Satellite communication network

HEWS works by setting up a communication network via satellite to survey and monitor risk indicators.

It allows communication between teams in the field and with command centres, as data from many locations can be collected, stored and processed.

Then it can be quickly analysed and distributed to the users who need it the most.

HEWS is an open platform, built using a modular approach, so the widest variety of users can implement it.

What will make HEWS critical to disaster relief agencies is that it is satellite based. Disasters may disrupt or even destroy local infrastructure – but satellites are immune to their effects.

The project is co-financed by ESA as part of the Health and Telemedicine via Satellite Programme. 

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