UltraVision aids China earthquake rescue efforts

BIRMINGHAM, U.K.--Members of China's emergency relief team of medics and soldiers are using the UltraVision LifeLocator life detection system to support post-earthquake rescue efforts, UltraVision announced yesterday on the IFSEC show floor. The LifeLocator can detect the earthquake victims' shallow breathing through debris piles created as a result of building and other structures' collapse. China life-safety and security distributor, Ancom Systems, donated LifeLocator to the emergency earthquake rescue team. The team is now searching for survivors of the earthquake in Wenchuan County after being forced to hike in overland due to massive damage to roads in the area. The LifeLocator is able to detect very slight movement such as the movement created from shallow breathing, important for victims who may not be able to otherwise move or call out. In addition, rescue efforts can be continual, requiring no interruptions of other rescue efforts to provide the silence required for audio-based detection systems. The LifeLocator is wireless, eliminating the need to deploy probes, cables or wiring to search for victims and creating maximum ease of mobility over treacherous ground. Detections occur in less than 30 seconds. The LifeLocator signals rescue personnel in real-time via a PDA that accurately and rapidly provides target information like location and distance to the victim. The team arrived nearly 24 hours after the 7.8-magnitude earthquake struck. Ancom Systems has distributed approximately 45 additional LifeLocators throughout various locations in China in the past five years and anticipates these will be used in other recovery efforts.