Nicole Janey, center, was voted by peers to represent the Class of 2020 Communication Center Manager program at Navigator.
Audrey Fraizer
Front stage at NAVIGATOR 2021 was a pitch far from EMD Nicole Janey’s stepping away from
a career in which she excelled and believed she would never leave.
But she did and came back again. Stronger.
Janey was an emergency dispatcher at the Boston Police Department, Massachusetts
(USA). She could dispatch the toughest of calls – the Boston Marathon bombing,
for example – and keep her cool knowing she was doing all she could to help. Sure,
some situations weighed more heavily on her than others but not to the extent
of the call convincing her to leave…
The APCO 2021 conference is taking place in San Antonio this week. Many attendees come from the public-safety community or are involved in some way with public-safety communications. Many others are the people who make up public safety’s front-line, handling incoming calls from citizens and dispatching public-safety resources to a multiplicity of incidents around the United States. Once again, APCO has devoted an entire conference track to FirstNet.
FirstNet Authority RFI
According to an article in Urgent Communications, the FirstNet Authority has issued a Request For Information (RFI) concerning off-network communications, primarily Push-To-Talk (PTT) voice communications. As many readers know, I have been skeptical about the section of the 3GPP Mission-Critical Push-To-Talk (MCPTT) standard that attempts to address off-network broadband communications. Samsung’s MCPTT solution includes Proximity Services (ProSe) embedded in its chip. Motorola recently announced it will also offer 3GPP-compliant MCPTT capabilities later this year but these products will not include ProSe…
FirstNet is researching ways to provide off-network broadband communications to public-safety workers.
In some cases, responders must operate in remote areas with no access to broadband communications. They may be too far from network towers or base stations or fighting fires in buildings that have lost power and have intermittent cellular coverage.
The FirstNet Authority wants to better understand emerging technologies and potential capabilities for enabling not just device-to-device communications but also relay networks and a full range of data services, according to an Aug. 12 request for information. It wants responders to be able to share pictures, video, location or internet-of-things data with other responders, devices, drones and third-party applications without access to the macro network – the towers, base stations, cables and other physical facilities that provide communications…
First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet) officials recently joined AT&T personnel in unveiling tools designed to aid Rhode Island first responders.
AT&T has delivered a pair of Compact Rapid Deployables (CRDs) to the Rhode Island Emergency Management Agency (RIEMA) – adding the state is the nation’s first to receive CRDs in conjunction with the decision to advance public safety broadband communications with FirstNet.
CRDs are trailered mobile units providing FirstNet cellular and Wi-Fi coverage via satellite connectivity to first responders…
AT&T announced that it had expanded 5G coverage for the FirstNet network to 10 more cities across the country.
First responders in Austin, Texas; Charlotte, North Carolina; Cleveland, Ohio; Dallas; El Paso, Texas; Houston, Texas; Knoxville, Tennessee; Phoenix; Raleigh, North Carolina; and San Antonio Texas now have access to 5G on the FirstNet network. Additionally, first responders in parts of 38 cities and more than 20 venues have access to AT&T millimeter wave spectrum.
Meanwhile, AT&T also announced that it launched nationwide interoperability between the FirstNet network and AT&T’s emergency services IP network (ESInet) solution. The carrier said that this connection allows FirstNet to serve as a wireless backup to connect public-safety answering points (PSAPs) and enable the delivery of IP-based 9-1-1 call traffic through the AT&T virtual private network…
What’s the news?FirstNet® – the only nationwide network built with and for America’s first responders – is keeping public safety connected unlike any other network. Here’s 3 strategic ways:
Expanding the FirstNet 5G footprint: As public safety’s communications partner, AT&T* has expanded 5G connectivity for first responders on FirstNet to further support public safety’s mission needs. Now, first responders in an additional 10 cities across the United States – Austin (Texas), Charlotte (N. Carolina), Cleveland (Ohio), Dallas (Texas), El Paso (Texas), Houston (Texas), Knoxville (Tenn.), Phoenix (Ariz.), Raleigh (N. Carolina) and San Antonio (Texas) –have access to 5G.
Deploying MegaRange™ for Disaster Response: Since launching FirstNet MegaRange earlier this year – which significantly improves connectivity, especially at the edge of network coverage – public safety has started experiencing its exclusive benefits as they respond to everyday emergencies and disasters. From remote patient care to the frontlines of wildfire response, MegaRange is keeping first responders connected at the edge of coverage when lives are on the line.
Launching nationwide interoperability with AT&T ESInet: To increase the flexibility and resiliency of AT&T NextGen 9-1-1 services, AT&T ESInet is now integrated with the FirstNet network. By serving as an automatic wireless backup to connect to public safety answering points (PSAP), FirstNet enables the delivery of IP-based 9-1-1 call traffic through the AT&T Virtual Private Network (VPN)…
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.
