The Rhodium Incident Management Suite, a cloud-based command and control software developed by Denver-based Incident Response Technologies, Inc. (IRT), was widely deployed in response to Hurricanes Harvey and Irma. As Harvey and Irma inundated portions of the U.S. with record rainfall and flooding, dozens of organizations ranging from local fire departments to large hospital campuses, relied on Rhodium for their planning and response.
Rhodium’s incident management capabilities allow incident commanders to quickly review pre-plan data, view current situation status, and document actions from a user-friendly touch screen focused interface. The software also includes a module that assists organizations with rapidly creating and distributing the FEMA Incident Command System forms, which are used to coordinate large scale disaster responses.
Rhodium’s intuitive interface makes it easy for users to deploy the system, even with little training. “If you understand IAP's at all, it's easy to do," said Chief Don Hughes of the Satellite Beach (FL) Fire Department. Having thorough FEMA ICS form documentation can also help organizations to achieve higher amounts of Federal monetary aid and reimbursement after a disaster response.
In at least three cases, organizations purchased brand new Rhodium™ accounts as they were already responding to the storms. Without any formal training, they were able to deploy the system and streamline their processes. “While I was deployed to Hurricanes Harvey and Irma, our organizational structure was becoming so large that a standard FEMA ICS-203 form could not reflect it accurately,” said John Caprio, an Emergency Operations Manager for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services – National Disaster Medical System. “My local county has been in the process of procuring Rhodium, so I reached out to IRT and asked if they could activate an account early for us to begin using during my federal deployment. They responded quickly and I was up and running within a few hours.”
Rhodium’s propriety electronic ICS form technology allows organizations to expand and contract their organizational structure in unique ways, enabling responders to quickly adapt to any type or size of incident. “I’ve been writing large scale incident action plans for 15 years and this tool greatly streamlined the process,” Caprio added. “I was able to expand the ICS 203 to properly show our large deployment of resources. I am going to be recommending Rhodium not only to my local agencies but to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services for their use.”
About Incident Response Technologies
Incident Response Technologies, Inc., has been providing cloud-based solutions for public safety organizations since 2005. IRT’s flagship product, the Rhodium Incident Management Suite, is currently in use throughout the United States and Canada by Police, Fire, EMS, Emergency Management, Campus Security, and other organizations.
For more information on the Rhodium Incident Management Suite, visit IRT’s website at www.irtsoftware.com or call (866) 260-733.