National Emergency Response Information System (NERIS)

The National Emergency Response Information System (NERIS) will be an all-hazards platform built to equip the fire and emergency service community with the necessary data and tools to improve decision-making and support enhanced incident preparedness. NERIS will be a secure, cloud-based platform that integrates external data sources to enhance baseline incident data. The system will enable local fire and emergency service agencies to access and use their own data, at the time scales needed, for informing mission-critical decisions.

“Data, and the knowledge it contains, is in fact the life blood of the fire service for the future.”
—Dr. Lori Moore-Merrell, U.S. Fire Administrator

The NERIS platform is being developed in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Science and Technology Directorate (DHS S&T), UL’s Fire Safety Research Institute (FSRI), the U.S. Fire Administration (USFA), and the American fire service. This effort is made possible through a research and development contract awarded to FSRI through DHS S&T.

Community partnership plays a significant role in the success of this effort. Fire and emergency response leaders will be directly engaged from the inception of this effort through the national roll-out. This collaborative effort leverages strong existing relationships between fire service organizations and the scientific research community.

Key Features

• Enhanced data integration capability and substantial computing power to minimize the burden for data contributors.
• User-defined and actionable analytic tools that support intelligence-led decision-making at the local level.
• Supports rapid integration and analysis of data from a multitude of sources including computer-aided dispatch systems, geographic information systems, physical and field sensors, and Records Management Systems.
• Bi-directional application programming interfaces (APIs) from and to other relevant systems and data services.
• Flexible and adaptable to the changing needs of the local fire service and first responders nationwide.

"NERIS is being developed to evolve with the needs of local emergency responders and the USFA. The data collected and analyzed in NERIS will provide insights to first responders that empower decision making along the same timeline as hazards they face are changing."
—Craig Weinschenk, research engineer, FSRI

For questions about this program, please contact the NERIS Information Desk.