Earthquakes, one of the most terrifying natural disasters, are the nightmare of many of us. In these disasters, we don’t usually see buildings collapse, if not very large. But there may be people trapped under debris when they collapse. After what happened, search and rescue teams come into play and work diligently to save these people.
Now, a project underway has revealed that not only humans but also rats can be used to rescue the stranded in the aftermath of such disasters. The Belgian non-profit organization APOPO says these creatures are prepared to help search and rescue teams.
Rats can save lives by wearing backpacks
According to CNN, APOPO said that the rodents were equipped with high-tech backpacks; so he can help emergency responders search for those trapped under the rubble, he says. Project leader Donna Kean said: “Rats are very curious creatures and love to explore. This is very important in search and rescue.”
Kean also points out that in addition to their adventurous spirit, these creatures’ small size and excellent sense of smell can help them find things in tight spaces. According to experts, rats are already being trained in a simulated disaster area. Creatures have to try to find the target person in a room, pull the button on the backpack they’re wearing, which triggers the ‘beep’, and then return to be rewarded. Experts think that with this method, the species can be ready to be used in search and rescue.
APOPO is working on backpacks equipped with a video camera, microphone and location transmitter to help emergency responders communicate with survivors. Dean, from the team working with the Eindhoven University of Technology in the Netherlands on this issue, emphasizes that together with the backpack and training, the breed can be very useful in search and rescue.
It should be noted that the organization has trained rats and dogs for the olfactory detection of mines and tuberculosis for over a decade. The African Rat, which has a long lifespan of eight years, was used in the programs. The new search and rescue project, on the other hand, has been trying to be implemented by the organization for years; but it officially started in April 2021.
Creatures also respond well to harsh conditions
The backpack came to life with the involvement of engineer Sander Verdeisen from Eindhoven University of Technology. The first prototype was built after that. The prototype had a video camera located in a section created by 3D printing and sending live images to a computer. In this way, a high-quality version of the images was also saved to an SD card in the system.
The bag was attached to the rats by a vest made of neoprene material similar to diving suits. Verdiesen said that at first he could not understand what tiny creatures would do with this vest; however, he later said that he adapted quickly and started walking around with the bag as if nothing had happened. Experts stated that they are currently trying to reduce the system and make it suitable for disaster areas. Verdeisen says they aim to make the creatures fit in any space, and the upgraded version could be available later this year.
As a result, we can say that the project will be of great help to search and rescue teams in earthquake disasters that we frequently encounter in our country in the future. Researchers, who say that animals are trained in 15-minute sessions five days a week, also note that although the program is still under development, the creatures respond well to different and challenging conditions, and it can take 9 to 12 months to train each rat.
In the next phase of the training, the rats will be tested in environments that simulate multiple floors of a collapsed building and prepare for real-world scenarios.
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