by ECC Editor | Jul 15, 2021 | Articles, Comm Center News
AUSTIN, Texas, July 14, 2021 /PRNewswire/ — In 2012 Joan Lantz called 9-1-1 on her cell phone. She died in her apartment in Rock Hill, South Carolina because 9-1-1 operators could not locate her. In 2020 Sheila Sheppard died in her Washington DC residence because the address of her emergency did not appear on the 9-1-1 operator’s screen. Every year there are countless tragic stories like these. Over the past 10 months calls to 9-1-1 have increased dramatically to exceed pre-pandemic levels and over 80% of those calls are from cell phones; as a result an increasing number of Americans are becoming aware of a serious problem. When 9-1-1 is called from a cell phone the call taker does not receive your address, 9-1-1 doesn’t know your location. Even in ideal circumstances where there is a high density of cell towers and the most advanced public safety technology, 9-1-1 can only identify that you’re in an area ranging from 25,000 to 27,000,000 square feet. Real Safe 911, a new app and system from Real Safe Brands, has solved this critical location issue. When you call emergency services using Real Safe 911, the 9-1-1 operator will automatically receive your current address. Real Safe 911 works over the existing 9-1-1 infrastructure, and with every 9-1-1 system in the US and Canada… READ MORE
by ECC Editor | Jul 15, 2021 | Articles, Comm Center News
North America’s leading 9-1-1 standards-development body today approved a landmark new version of its Next Generation 9-1-1 standard, a move that will accelerate the transition to smarter, faster, and more resilient emergency response. Version 3 of the National Emergency Number Association’s (NENA) i3 Standard for Next Generation 9-1-1 includes key updates to NG911 infrastructure, paving the way for interoperability on a national and international scale.
“This is a landmark moment in the evolution of NG911,” said Gary Bell, ENP, President of NENA. “The public-safety community and the tech industry now have the most up-to-date, comprehensive, consensus-driven, open standard for NG911. This will no doubt hasten and strengthen our push to see NG911 systems, services, and products deployed coast to coast.” … READ MORE
by AllThingsECC.com | Jul 15, 2021 | Articles, Comm Center News
We will start this Advocate with an introduction to the “No Noise Task Force” (NNTF), which operates under the auspices of the Safer Buildings Coalition (SBC). The NNTF will be investigating in-building communications, primarily for the public-safety community, but also for all of us who need to communicate while inside buildings. Then we will look at eight approved vendors for Push-To-Talk (PTT) over FirstNet and give a nod to Next-Generation 9-1-1 (NG911).
The Need for In-Building Wireless Communications
Over several decades, organizations, companies, people, and first responders have transformed the way we communicate. Today, we have robust fixed and wireless broadband systems, most of our smartphones and tablets are connected wirelessly, and 80% of all calls received by Emergency Communications Centers (ECCs) are delivered through wireless devices and networks…
by AllThingsECC.com | Jul 14, 2021 | Articles, Comm Center News
What Tech Can Be Used in a Deployable Operations Center?
Over the past several years, communications capabilities for first responders have advanced significantly. These capabilities can be integrated into a deployable operations center model. FirstNet, the public safety broadband network built by AT&T, offers ground-based assets such as its Cell on Wheels and heavy-duty Satellite Cell on Light Trucks communication solutions.
Providers such as Motorola offer private LTE, which allows public safety organizations to determine where, how and when private 4G LTE networks will perform. Cisco’s Ultra-Reliable Wireless Backhaul offering (formerly Fluidmesh) can provide organizations with “fiberlike performance for mission-critical applications,” according to the company…
by ECC Editor | Jul 13, 2021 | Articles, Comm Center News
National Emergency Number Association (NENA) board members yesterday released the latest version of the i3 standard for next-generation 911 (NG911) infrastructure, which will be submitted to the American National Standard Institute (ANSI) for approval that could resolve one point of contention in NG911 funding proposals.
“This is a landmark moment in the evolution of NG911,” NENA President Gary Bell said in a prepared statement. “The public-safety community and the tech industry now have the most up-to-date, comprehensive, consensus-driven, open standard for NG911. This will no doubt hasten and strengthen our push to see NG911 systems, services, and products deployed coast to coast… READ MORE
by AllThingsECC.com | Jul 11, 2021 | Articles, Comm Center News
By Karl Wilmes, Chief (ret)
I remember as a newly promoted Sergeant meeting with my shift of officers outside in the parking lot of a bar fight. The incident was all but over, and one of the officers called dispatch on the radio for some information on a suspect we were arresting. The portable radio did not work, and Officer Mike threw the radio across the parking lot and announced to the world, “this piece of s..t” never works”. I clearly remember the radio breaking into pieces as it splashed against the asphalt. I can remember thinking to myself how I was going to explain this to the Chief in the morning and thinking those brand new Sergeant stripes on my shirt were probably gone.
That was the golden ages of law enforcement, the eighties. Today, we all have smart phones. No different than in the dark ages of just a portable radio, when you are on the scene of an incident, or simply need to call home you want your phone to work. Who wants to hear, “can you hear me now”, in a snowstorm at 3:00 A.M. in the morning…
