Carbon County, located in south central Montana, is home to approximately 10,000 citizens and covers more than 2,000 square miles, encompassing the Custer National Forest and the northeast entrance to Yellowstone National Park.
To support an E-911 services implementation that would shorten emergency response times and save lives, Carbon County needed an accurate, centralized database of new addresses that could be easily accessed by non-GIS trained public safety personnel and citizens. Carbon County secured a grant to implement the GeoAtlas project, leveraging GeoPDF Publisher® to prepare interactive, portable and intelligent maps and imagery that allow users in the field to access, update and share compact geospatial information. Carbon County selected TerraGo because of the ease with which maps could be created and distributed, both digitally and in print.
Through the deployment of TerraGo software and solutions, Carbon County has now produced more than 150 maps for first responders, including a detailed 400-page digital atlas covering the entire county. This digital atlas has enabled the county to successfully support its enhanced 911 system and has in turn reduced emergency response time and helped save lives. The atlas has also become an indispensable tool for public safety and first responders, as well as businesses, which can access up-to-date geospatial information without needing GIS training or additional software.
GeoPDF maps can also be distributed on paper printouts, USB flash drives or DVDs for offline users in the field. Additionally, users in the field can now make updates to the GeoPDF maps using geo-referenced notes, photos, video or other information and then return the updates to the Esri ArcGIS® database.