David Merrick – the Director of Florida State University’s Emergency Management and Homeland Security Program (EMHS) and Center for Disaster Risk Policy – was awarded a nearly $55,000 National Science Foundation grant for a project titled “Datasets for Uncrewed Aerial System (UAS) and Remote Responder Performance from Hurricane Ian.”
The goal of the project is to create datasets for researchers based on all the imagery collected and created during the EMHS UAS team’s response to Hurricane Ian.
It will bring together all the pilots and personnel deployed to areas affected by Ian to evaluate the remote sensing process. Remote sensing is used to capture images of impacted areas from above to help on-site responders.
This dialogue, combined with the data analysis from the response, aims to develop new training and procedures for similar work in the future.
“This project will help us better understand how remote sensing data is collected in a major disaster, and lead to a more effective response in the future,” Merrick said.
FSU staff will work with colleagues from Texas A&M University to complete the project over the next year.