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• Greater coordination among the various County Departments to ensure effective <br /> " emergency operations; specifically, the Building Division and Office of the Property <br /> Appraiser play key roles in Post Emergency Response . <br /> • Mapping of radio tower locations, including towers outside jurisdiction (The Division <br /> often gets calls for towers not in their jurisdiction ) . <br /> • Hosting emergency related data on a public internet web browser (The Division often <br /> gets calls from the public to find out if they live in a flood zone , or to see locations <br /> where power or traffic lights are out . <br /> Response Time Analysis <br /> GIS can be used to analyze the response times for each of the fire stations and volunteer <br /> locations within the County . It is recommended that the department work with the GIS <br /> Director to use the GIS functionality for development of a response time matrix for the <br /> County. This data is beneficial in analyzing and best-use-planning for placement of <br /> departmental resources such as additional fire stations . <br /> It Case Study Fire Aaencies Improve Response Time with GIS <br /> " Fire agencies on all levels strive to preserve lives , property, and natural resources . Many <br /> agencies have embraced GIS as a tool that helps them balance needs , uses , and hazards <br /> to promote sustainability of the environment while identifying and limiting vulnerability . <br /> Effectively handling fires, whether structural fires in densely populated areas or wildfires <br /> raging over thousands of acres of forested land, involves planning strategic response on a <br /> regional scale , developing a tactical response for a specific event , formulating and carrying <br /> out a mitigation program , and analyzing incident data to improve policies and training <br /> programs-all activities enhanced by GIS . GIS-based fire tools range from Internet <br /> applications using Internet Map Server ( IMS ) technology to desktop applications developed <br /> using Arc View GIS and its extensions to sophisticated real-time enterprise-wide applications <br /> using Arclnfo . <br /> Developing Regional Strategies <br /> Strategic planning answers three location-based questions : Where are the hazards ? Where <br /> are the areas at highest risk ? Where are the most valuable resources located ? GIS is <br /> especially suited to answer these queries . Typically , strategic plans are made on a regional <br /> level with all agencies that have jurisdiction in the region involved in planning or at least <br /> agreeing to basic strategies . <br /> Overlaying vegetation data with topography and transportation networks shows where fuel <br /> is present and identifies areas that may be hard to reach . Mapping historical data on fires, <br /> lightning strikes , arson activity, and other related events available from databases and <br /> paper records showing where fires occurred in the past can be used to gauge the likelihood <br /> of future fires . Finally, resources that are required to manage and recover from a fire such as <br /> water sources or transportation networks or resources that represent an unacceptable loss <br /> such as a hospital must be located . Aggregating data representing hazard , risk , and value <br /> factors for a region identifies areas with the highest priority. <br /> 47 <br /> GIS Needs Assessment and Implementation Plan Chapter 1 - Departmental GIS Needs Assessment <br />