Featured Software: CAMEO

Computer-Aided Management of Emergency Operations (CAMEO) is a free system of software for planning and responding to chemical emergencies.  It was developed by the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA), Office of Emergency Management (OEM) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Office of Response and Restoration (ORR).  CAMEO uses five interlocking pieces of software to create a mapped view of a chemical emergency plan and response.  As described on the CAMEO home page, those software pieces are:

 

• CAMEO - A database application that includes eight modules (such as facilities and contacts) to assist with data management requirements under the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA),
• CAMEO Chemicals - An extensive chemical database with critical response information for thousands of chemicals,
• MARPLOT (Mapping Applications for Response, Planning, and Local Operational Tasks) - A mapping tool used to allow users to see their data and visualize significance,
• ALOHA (Areal Locations of Hazardous Atmospheres) - An atmospheric dispersion model used for evaluating releases of hazardous chemical vapors, and
• LandView - A program that provides federal environmental and census data on maps.

For more information and links to download the software, use the appropriate link below:

About CAMEO

Download CAMEO and Related Software

Learn About CAMEO Training Opportunities

Comment: Don't expect 3D modeling or any other fancy bells and whistles with this software package.  However, it is very good for what it was designed to do: Place a basic chemical emergency planning and response visualization tool in the hands of America's responders.  And, did I mention, it's free!