As part of AIT''s Response to the Myanmar
Cyclone Disaster, the Internet Education and Research
Laboratory (intERLab) has been working to assist post-disaster recovery
by applying ICT to facilitate management and effective coordination
amongst field workers of local government agencies and NGOs. The
intERLab has been coordinating with Myanmar Egress (ME) and Myanmar
Computer Professional Association (MCPA) for the Post-disaster Recovery
Management and Coordination Program, which is useful in handling of
relief, recovery and resettlement activities in the aftermath of
Cyclone Nargis.
Known as DUMBO, which stands for Digital Ubiquitous Mobile Broadband
OLSR, (OSLR being a networking term meaning Optimized Link State
Routing), this platform can deploy mobile wireless networks on an ad
hoc (MANET) basis for emergency conditions, such in a post-disaster
scenario in which a fixed network infrastructure is not available or
had been destroyed. In this emergency network, the mobile nodes can
communicate directly amongst themselves using voice over IP (VoIP) and
SMS messages. Streaming video can be sent from each node to the central
coordination unit, which can then broadcast to all nodes in the
network. The central unit can be located either in the disaster areas
or anywhere on the Internet or Intranet.
organizations in Asia Pacific region, such as APNIC, APNG, DotAsia,
Relief.Asia, SOI-Asia, WIDE Project, THNIC etc., intERLab provided
hands-on training for five Myanmar IT engineers from 21-24 May 2008.
On 25 May 2008, five Myanmar IT engineers returned to
Yangon with the computers and equipment provided by
sponsor organizations through intERLab/AIT. Myanmar IT Engineers from
MCPA and Nargis Action Group of Myanmar Egress are now working in the
field to deploy DUMBO.
DUMBO deployment will also include the Sahana ©¤ a free and open
source disaster management system that grew out of the 2004 Asian
Tsunami disaster. In Sri
Lanka, volunteers put together the
Sahana Disaster Management System to help track families and coordinate
work among relief organizations during and after the tsunami disaster.
Sahana has been deployed in government, NGO, UN and volunteer community
levels in many countries, including Pakistan,
the Philippines, Indonesia, Peru,
Lebanon, Sri
Lanka, Bangladesh and
more.
The introductory phase of DUMBO deployment
is expected to be launched in the second week of June 2008 and will be
introduced to the user groups as soon as possible.