Portland residents calling 911 to report emergencies are facing a “dramatic increase” in hold times, with officials saying that the system has become “unmanageable” and is “broken.”
According to The Oregonian, people dialing 911 are often left waiting over two minutes for their call to be answered, far longer than the national standard of 15 to 20 seconds.
People calling 911 to report a Sept. 4 shootout at a Pearl District restaurant and other emergencies in the following half-hour waited an average of more than 7.5 minutes before a dispatcher answered, The Oregonian reported, adding that this was just “the latest example of serious problems plaguing the city’s emergency dispatch system.” …
Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Acting Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel released the agenda for the FCC’s upcoming September Open Commission Meeting, scheduled for September 30.
During the meeting, Commissioners will cover a wide range of topics, including network resiliency, IoT spectrum needs, promoting public safety, and expanding Tribal broadband access.
Items included on the meeting agenda are:
Promoting More Resilient Networks – The Commission will consider a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to examine the Wireless Network Resiliency Cooperative Framework, the FCC’s network outage reporting rules, and strategies to address the effect of power outages on communications networks.
Reassessing 4.9 GHz Band for Public Safety – The Commission will consider an Order on Reconsideration that would vacate the 2020 Sixth Report and Order, which adopted a state-by-state leasing framework for the 4.9 GHz band. The Commission also will consider an Eighth Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking that would seek comment on a national framework for the 4.9 GHz band, ways to foster greater public safety use, and ways to facilitate compatible non-public safety access to the band…
CHARLESTON, Mo. (KFVS) – The Charleston Department of Public Safety has announced that a Communications Officer who has served for almost two decades has passed away.
In a statement, the Charleston Department of Public Safety said Shalonda Sinks-Chappell served in the role since 2003.
The statement said she passed away from complications associated with COVID-19 on 9/11…
BLOUNTVILLE — Anyone who is not old enough to remember the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001 might take two words for granted.
Homeland security.
In the wake of 9/11, President George W. Bush founded the U.S. Department of Homeland Security at the federal level. States and local governments across the nation implemented programs to follow and enforce the agency’s protocols and guidelines in order to receive federal grants to increase security measures. The Tennessee Department of Public Safety became The Tennessee Department of Public Safety and Homeland Security. Emergency management agencies across the state are now divided into geographic subsets identified as Homeland Security Districts…
A view of regional dispatch in Middleton as shown on the Wenham PD website. Photo by Nicolaus Czarnecki.
In July of 1999, Ipswich transitioned its emergency communication staffing from sworn police officers to a group of civilian personnel specifically trained and experienced in this rapidly complex task.
Dedicated professionals, their duties include call taking, dispatching police/fire and ambulance services, and assisting members of the public who enter the station-house lobby.
They provide police officers with the timely and accurate broadcast of emergencies, calls for assistance, and partner in their safety during vehicle stops when criminal history or operator information is requested…
DURHAM, N.C. (WNCN) –Durham residents are concerned about having to wait longer for someone to answer 911 calls, as the percentage of call taker vacancies in the Bull City has grown to almost 50 percent.
Durham city officials said during a city council work session on Thursday that there are 28 vacant positions out of 60 at the Durham Emergency Communications Center. That’s up from the 26 vacancies city officials said they had in May 2021, when they said there were seven people in training… READ MORE
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.
