By Edward Parkinson, CEO First Responder Network Authority
Soon after the planes hit the World Trade Center towers on September 11, 2001, Brad Morrell deployed from Utah to New York City as part of an urban search and rescue team.
Aboard the military airlift transporting rescuers, Brad remembers seeing otherwise empty skies except for the fighter jets escorting their plane. When they got to the fallen towers, the scene was unlike anything else he and his teammates had experienced.
In the initial days, cell service was non-existent, land-mobile radios were down, and repeaters to boost signals weren’t working. The only communications available to Brad and his team were two-way pagers they brought from Utah.
“We knew that comms was an issue. For the first few days, we couldn’t talk from Ground Zero back to our base of operations,” said Brad who now serves as the FirstNet Authority’s Director of Network and Technology Operations.
Sep. 9—To improve public safety and the efficiency of the Barton County Communications Department in light of COVID-19, the County Commission Tuesday morning OKed purchase of a four-person dispatching console for 911, utilizing federal pandemic relief funding.
On Aug. 12, Barton County invited proposals for an integrated IP-based, four-position dispatch console that would work with existing equipment in the Communications Center, 1300 Stone, Great Bend. Sealed bids were accepted until Aug. 24, with the only bid coming from Motorola for a MCC 7500E station at total cost of $ 634,436, said Grant Coordinator Sue Cooper.
“There is a wait time to get the equipment built, programed and shipped,” Communications Director Dena Popp said. It is a minimum of four to six months before it would arrive here…
As New York firefighters struggled to find and rescue victims in the Twin Towers during the chaos of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, critical communication weaknesses contributed to the deaths and injuries of multiple emergency workers.
“You can have the best fire protection systems in the world,” said Ed Murphy, Newton’s fire chief at the time, but “you don’t have a formula for what we witnessed in New York.”
Since the attacks, emergency and safety departments around the country made changes and continue to advocate for improved technology and ongoing training to increase safety…
Ceremonies and events will be held in Arlington this weekend to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks on Saturday.
The events will pay tribute to those who died as well as to Arlington’s first responders, whose response to the Pentagon attack has been hailed as a “model for the nation” by the 9/11 Commission.
Among the events on tap are a wreath-laying ceremony, a memorial 5K, a bike ride, a softball tournament, and a private event at the Pentagon for the families of the victims…start at 7:30 a.m. Saturday, and will feature the Armed Services Color Guard, the 3rd Army Old Guard Ceremonial Fife and Drums Corps, and the fire department.
Twenty years ago, 9/11 changed our lives as we know it. Everyone who lived through the horrific events of that day will never forget what they witnessed.
As we take this time to reflect on the loss we all experienced that day, I also vividly recall what I, and countless others, observed in the immediate aftermath. I saw humanity working together at its best in the wake of immeasurable tragedy. I saw a fighting spirit that wouldn’t let evil get the best of them. I saw unyielding support for the heroes who ran toward danger to help their fellow man.
That’s why FirstNet ® is proud to work with the nonprofit 9/11 Day to channel the emotions from the annual remembrance of 9/11 into a worldwide day of unity and doing good…
Learn about current efforts to continue to protect the 4.9 GHz Band for public safety as well as recent filings, key decisions impacting these efforts, and how you can support PSSA’s initiative to protect the 4.9 GHz band for public safety.
