First responder preparedness

News and Updates

A two-lane highway lined with the burnt remains of vehicles that were destroyed by fire while in traffic..

NIST Updates Critical Wildfire Evacuation and Sheltering Guidance

April 24, 2025

The ESCAPE report redefines how to save lives in the face of fast-moving wildfires.

Technology Demonstrations at 5x5

January 16, 2025

Do you have an innovative, cutting-edge, or emerging technology that has the potential to advance public safety communications? NIST Public Safety

NIST Hosts Workshop on “Whole Community Preparedness for Smart Cities and Communities”

October 1, 2024

On 27-28 August 2024, NIST’s Smart Connected Systems Division hosted a workshop at the George H. W. Bush School of Government and Public Service in Washington D

Blog Posts

Four men are protected by a net structure as they look away from the camera toward a drone flying in a large high-ceilinged room with street signs on the walls.

Drones in Disaster Zones: How Advanced 3D Mapping Technology Can Help First Responders Save Lives

NIST Partnership Helps Communities Manage Unknown Dangers in Common Street Drugs

It Takes a (Worldwide) Village to Improve Drone Technology for First Responders

Events

5x5: The Public Safety Innovation Summit

Tue, Jun 3 - Thu, Jun 5 2025

REGISTER NOW 5x5 ― the confirmation of a strong and clear signal ― and the place to make your voice heard and drive

Needs and Research Gaps Surrounding Safe Handling of Synthetic Opioids and Other Emerging Compounds of Concern

Mon, Jun 9 - Tue, Jun 10 2025

As part of NIST's response to the 2023 TRANQ Research Act, we have started a series of workshop to better understand the

Towards Increased Data Sharing and Standardization for Illicit Drug Analysis and Monitoring

Wed, Jun 11 - Fri, Jun 13 2025

As part of NIST's response to the 2023 TRANQ Research Act, we have started a series of workshop to better understand the

Projects and Programs

Indoor Localization and Tracking

Completed

Please see the page that describes NIST work in this area.

Surrogate Materials to Support Training in Biological Sampling and Detection in the Field

Ongoing

Nationwide, first responders regularly encounter suspicious materials that might be biological threat agents. Routine training and process evaluations help ensure workflows, operators, and technologies are working together properly within the concept of operations. Biological test materials have the

Open Port Liquid Interface Mass Spectrometry

Ongoing

Rapid screening for chemical traces of explosives and narcotics is widely used to support homeland security and law enforcement. These target compounds span a range of physicochemical properties from organic to inorganic, with preferential ionization pathways in both negative and positive mode

Sensing and Imaging of concealed objects

Ongoing

Threats to personal and collective safety abound in our society. The Security Technologies Group (STG) performs research to advance the technology and measurement science of security imaging and sensing. This work includes the establishment of test and evaluation tools, reference test beds, test

Publications

Adapting NIST Aerial Drone Tests for Thermal Identification, Inspection and Suppression of Wildfires

December 6, 2024

Author(s)

Alex Fraley, Ethan Nowery, McCarthy Devine, Adam Jacoff, Paul Oh

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has developed standard test methods to evaluate the capabilities of aerial drones, ground robots, and

Examining the Effects of Deep Learning Model Structure on Model Interpretability for Time-Series Classifications in Fire Research

September 13, 2024

Author(s)

Wai Cheong Tam, Fan Linhao, Qi Tong, Fang Hongqiang

This present work utilizes an interpretability model to understand and explain the decisions of deep learning models. The use of DeepLIFT is proposed and

The Effect of Mandatory Fitness Requirements on Cardiovascular Events: A State-by-State Analysis Using a National Database

March 1, 2024

Author(s)

Dillon Dzikowicz, Sankalp Saoji, Wai Cheong Tam, Wendy Brunner, Mary Carey

Background: Cardiovascular events are known to be the leading cause of death among on-duty firefighters. Implementing fitness standards may help reduce the

Building Fire Hazard Predictions Using Machine Learning

January 26, 2024

Author(s)

Eugene Yujun Fu, Wai Cheong Tam, Tianhang Zhang, Xinyan Huang

The lack of information on the fire ground has always been the leading factor in making wrong decisions . Wrong decisions can be made by individual firefighters

Tools and Instruments

Large Aperture Scanner

The Large Aperture Scanner (LAS) scans a radar transceiver over a 5 meter by 20 meter aperture. Image reconstruction techniques enable a three-dimensional