Safe Zone and RapidSOS, a data provider for emergency communications centers, are partnering to send gunfire-detection data directly from Safe Zone detectors to 911 centers nationwide.
Safe Zone gunfire detection systems capture acoustic, spectral and impulsive shock wave data for use in commercial buildings, schools and other public spaces. The technology was developed in response to the rise in active shooter incidents and is said to enable faster and more efficient response to threats.
Through their partnership with RapidSOS, Safe Zone sends critical metadata directly to 911, notifying authorities immediately of the threat, according to an announcement. The information includes:
• floorplan of the building showing the location of the shooter
• weapon format
• number of shots fired with timestamps for each
During active shooter situations, 911 is, on average, called five minutes after the first shots are fired, according to Safe Zone. Police arrive 13 minutes after notification, and it typically takes police 15 minutes to assess the situation and prepare for deployment.
Incidents are usually not confronted until 12 minutes after deployment, totaling on average a 45-minute response time to critically dangerous events, according to the company. When emergency calls are placed during these events, callers are typically unable to provide the crucial contextual information that a Safe Zone gunfire detector can, the company says.
“We’re proud to partner with a company that’s nobly creating a solution for a problem we hope to never experience,” states Viyas Sundaram, general manager at RapidSOS. “By sending gunfire detection data directly to 911, Safe Zone and RapidSOS are helping to protect the lives of both victims and first responders with critical situational data that can expedite response times.”
The nation’s 911 system was created over 50 years ago for analog landlines, with no capacity to receive additional data, the announcement states. Through RapidSOS’ free solutions for public safety, 911 can access Safe Zone data instantaneously, without RapidSOS, this data could not be delivered to the thousands of 911 centers nationwide.
“By partnering with RapidSOS, Safe Zone is able to drastically reduce the time it takes for authorities to respond to active shooter events,” says John Anderson CTO of Safe Zone. “We’re able to deliver critical data, including the approximate location of a shooter, number of weapons fired, caliber of bullets fired, and more, within seconds of an event. This is game changing for police and EMS – it helps them prepare more efficiently and know exactly what kind of situation they’re getting into.”
