The crew from St Mary’s were joined by members of our Resilience team and wildfire officers, as well as Chief Fire Officer Neil Odin, to explain how they utilise the mapping agency’s technology to assist them when responding to incidents.
The first-of-its-kind event saw representatives from HIWFRS, South Central Ambulance Service, Devon and Cornwall Police, HM Coastguard, Mountain Rescue and Ministry of Defence demonstrate how they use cutting edge and up-to-date OS location data and tools to create a resilient and safe nation.
Our team were able to explain the role building height data plays in how they manage incidents, as well as how the OS technology helps them to tackle wildfires.
They also displayed their specialist kit, as well as the aerial ladder platform vehicle.
Hampshire and Isle of Wight Fire and Rescue Service Chief Fire Officer Neil Odin said:
“It’s wonderful to be here today to meet Her Royal Highness and showcase how the mapping tools which Ordnance Survey has produced help our crews every day when responding to incidents.
“The systems developed allow us to identify the risk-information for buildings before we arrive on scene, ensuring our teams are prepared for the emergencies they face.
“The technology is also a vital tool for our firefighters at wildfire incidents, helping them to understand the geography of the land affected.”
Her Royal Highness was given a tour of the OS head office, Explorer House in Southampton, before meeting with the emergency services.
The Princess Royal was then given an exclusive preview of the exciting new OS Emergency Services Gazetteer, a new product due to be launched in the spring.
The gazetteer is a comprehensive and maintained database of locations, currently containing 1.3 million features such as motorway junctions and roundabouts.
Developed in close collaboration with the emergency services, it is particularly effective in identifying the location of those areas that have no addresses, like named cliffs and waterfalls.
It is designed to equip responders with the precise location information they need to act quickly to save lives and property during emergencies.
Chief Executive Officer at OS, Nick Bolton said:
“I was incredibly proud to welcome Her Royal Highness to our showcase event, to see at first-hand how OS is supporting the emergency services in keeping the nation safe. We have a longstanding and close relationship with the blue light community and this was an excellent moment to reflect on how OS technology, services and products – such as the new OS Emergency Services Gazetteer – are making a difference to the services they provide on a minute by minute basis.
“The showcase was also a great opportunity to bring a number of communities under one roof – highlighting our first-class OS teams who work so hard to collate and improve our data and allowing us to appreciate and further understand the work of the customers we support so closely.”
During her visit, The Princess Royal also had the opportunity to see a demonstration of the recently launched OS Vernacular Names tool, which will, in future, help power the gazetteer with colloquial nicknames for features, landmarks and buildings.
Her Royal Highness added a new colloquial name into the Vernacular Names database – ‘the wedding cake’ – an alternative name for the Queen Victoria Memorial, which is situated opposite Buckingham Palace in London.
OS provides its data and services to the emergency services and wider public sector organisations through the Public Sector Geospatial Agreement (PSGA). The PSGA is a contract between the government and OS for the provision of geospatial data across multiple themes, including buildings, transport, structures, addressing and land. The contract delivers key data to public sector members for use in everyday settings to support provision of critical services to the public. OS also remains on call 24/7 with its mapping for emergencies service, whether for a natural emergency or security threat.
Photos by Ordnance Survey