City of Oshkosh delivers rapid community response using FME

When a child goes missing, every second matters

The Child Abduction Response Team (CART) in the City of Oshkosh has a multi-jurisdictional response when a child goes missing. It has essential systems for tracking leads and mapping the Place Last Seen, which is used to set up roadblocks and medical stations, and organize search and rescue efforts.

The problem was that the mapping updates were being done manually by a GIS team. This manual process was taking valuable minutes away from deploying information. Worse, the maps could often not be updated quickly enough as events unfolded, so the information was often out of date when teams received it.

CART’s goal was to make everything happen as fast and accurately as possible so that crucial decisions could be made. They knew that they needed to automate their mapping process to make it faster and more accurate. Ideally, they wanted to enable decision-makers to see events happen in real-time.

How they made it possible – no code required

CART used FME to process and map incidents, leads, and assets automatically. FME connects the lead tracking SQL database to ArcGIS Online and keeps the map updated with new information reported by the public. The map shows the Place Last Seen and a quarter-mile buffer, enabling the team to focus initial search efforts within that area.

Enabling real-time mapping and spatial data processing meant that CART could faster deploy targeted search and rescue resources

Automatically generating maps frees the GIS team to focus on tasks that depend on human judgment, like verifying leads before they get mapped. Using FME ensures the spatial data is mapped more accurately and efficiently. Data is processed and sent to ArcGIS Online within seconds, giving CART members real-time information and enabling fast decision-making.