Search and rescue researcher available for comment

Dr. Kwame Awuah-Offei, chair of mining and explosives engineering at Missouri University of Science and Technology, is available for comment on potential search and rescue technology that could be used for future disasters similar to the Morocco earthquake.  

Awuah-Offei, who also serves as the Union Pacific/Rocky Mountain Energy Professor in Mining Engineering at S&T, is a co-principal investigator of a research team focused on using a Boston Dynamics Spot robot to facilitate self-rescue in underground mine emergencies.   

The Boston Dynamics Spot robot could potentially search locations inaccessible to humans, Awuah-Offei says. It can be outfitted with technology such as a thermal cameras or gas monitors and find the safest escapeways for survivors of disasters.   

This project is part of a nearly $4 million cooperative agreement Missouri S&T has with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. 

Awuah-Offei joined the Missouri S&T faculty in 2007 after earning his Ph.D. in mining engineering at S&T in 2006.   

About Missouri University of Science and Technology

Missouri University of Science and Technology (Missouri S&T) is a STEM-focused research university of over 7,000 students. Part of the four-campus University of Missouri System and located in Rolla, Missouri, Missouri S&T offers 101 degrees in 40 areas of study and is among the nation’s top 10 universities for return on investment, according to Business Insider. For more information about Missouri S&T, visit www.mst.edu.