Roskilde Fire Department and Bliksund have entered into a development agreement that translates the classic emergency management principle, 'leading from the front', into modern, digital emergency management.
'Leading from the front' has long been a classic concept in emergency response contexts. It means that the leader follows the troops closely and makes decisions based on insight into the incident. In Roskilde Fire Department's new collaboration with Bliksund, the concept is now being taken into the digital age with live video that ensures the incident commander sees the incident even before the first fire engine arrives.
IncidentShare now enables 'Video from the front'. Roskilde Fire Department can access live video on mobile phones, bodycams, drones, tablets and - as a result of the new collaboration - via direct access to more than 800 surveillance cameras on public buildings in Roskilde Municipality.
A breakthrough for the use of technology in emergency response
Roskilde Fire Department is the first in the country to gain access to the many cameras in the municipality - a milestone for the use of live video in emergency response.
"The agreement with Roskilde Municipality is a seal of approval. It shows that we have an openness and maturity in our collaboration, where technology is a necessary tool. This is the future of emergency response in Denmark," says Kim Roger Petersen, incident commander at Roskilde Fire Department.
Now the incident commander logs directly into the cameras on site via IncidentShare and gets an instant, real-time visual overview. Is there smoke? Are there signs of fire? Are people or animals in danger? Is it a false alarm?
"Using live video in this way is a breakthrough for us. We get an immediate picture of the situation before we arrive. It gives us a better opportunity to react quickly and with the right resources," says Kim Roger Petersen.
How Roskilde Fire Department also uses IncidentShare
Access to the municipality's cameras is the latest way to use IncidentShare - but far from the only one. In fact, the emergency services have been using the system since 2018 and actively use it in a variety of situations, all of which fall under 'camera from the front':
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When calling 112, where the caller is sent a link and live streams directly from the scene
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From drones, which are especially used for large fires and searches in large areas such as on water
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From bodycams on smoke divers working in burning buildings
"Front-facing cameras with IncidentShare give us an extra sense that saves time, which can ultimately save lives. We don't just listen to words - we see what's happening. Our emergency response team speaks from the same picture - and that makes a crucial difference,"
explains Kim Roger Petersen and continues:
"At a recent chemical incident, the smoke divers mounted a bodycam directly on a shelf. It gave us an instant overview of tasks and risks without the smoke divers having to spend precious seconds explaining."
Paving the way for future emergency response
The development agreement between Roskilde Fire Department and Bliksund helps define how live video and cameras from the front can be used in future emergency response. The experiences from Roskilde will help set the standard for future collaboration between the fire department, municipality and technology providers.
"We hope that front-facing cameras with IncidentShare will spread. We are not the largest fire department in Denmark, but we want to use technology in new ways whenever we have the opportunity. And we do that with IncidentShare," says Kim Roger Petersen.
