California city combines advanced technology with dedicated public safety team for comprehensive emergency management

by | May 14, 2021 | Articles, Comm Center News

The highly unusual circumstances of the past year have provided many new lessons for political leaders and emergency managers. The overarching lesson is that the unexpected can happen at any time and local, regional and national government must be prepared to respond rapidly in a collaborative manner with the private sector and residents.

Comprehensive emergency management must involve not only timely, effective responses, but also detailed and actionable communication, which includes life-safety information. State-of-the-art technology is playing a critical role in the U.S. and abroad, making it easier for multiple agencies and emergency personnel to work together to respond to and manage dangerous natural disasters, including wildfires, floods, tornadoes, hurricanes, earthquakes, tsunamis, extreme weather and other critical events…

Emergency Connectivity across the Coffs region expands with three new Public Safety Network sites (Australia)

Emergency Connectivity across the Coffs region expands with three new Public Safety Network sites (Australia)

by | May 14, 2021 | Comm Center News

Orara Rural Fire Service will benefit from the new Public Safety Network Sites.

THE PUBLIC Safety Network (PSN), formerly known as The Government Radio Network, has been expanded across the Coffs Coast with three new sites at Upper Orara, Korora and Mt Coramba.

Next to Australia’s triple zero emergency hotline, the PSN is the most critical communications network in NSW.

For residents of these regions it means faster and more effective reporting and response to emergency services.

The main aim of the PSN is to consolidate all emergency resources into one network, ensuring greater coverage and reliability than if each department had its own independent communication system.

Tom Reeve, Captain at Orara Rural Fire Service told News Of The Area, “It’s absolutely brilliant, and about time because it allows us to talk with the other emergency services…

Lyon County Commission approves WiFi upgrade, ew starting wage for emergency dispatchers (KS)

by | May 14, 2021 | Comm Center News

All Lyon County facilities will get improved wireless Internet capacity after Thursday’s County Commission action meeting.

Separately, commissioners approved a new starting wage for emergency dispatchers. The Emergency Communications Center has been using a training wage of $15.40 an hour, with an increase to $16.90 after dispatchers exit training. After a request from department director Roxanne Van Gundy, commissioners agreed to start dispatchers at $16.90 even if they are in the training window. Van Gundy says the money is already budgeted, so there will be no additional impact in that regard. The move is a step to attract and retain dispatchers and comes as numerous emergency departments are struggling to keep their dispatchers on board…

York County Commissioners implementing Next Generation 911 with help of PEMA (PA)

by | May 14, 2021 | Comm Center News

YORK, Pa. (WHTM) — The York County Commissioners on Wednesday approved an agreement with the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency to provide support in implementing Next Generation 911 services.

Next Generation 911 will transition Pennsylvania’s current 911 infrastructure to an internet protocol-based system. The process is expected to take a year before the first region in PA is activated on the Next Generation service.

Some of the improvements that come with NG911 include:

  • Receive incoming calls faster with more accurate caller information.
  • Transfer 911 calls and call information to the correct jurisdiction.
  • Rely on modern Geographic Information System or GIS technology to locate a caller’s location.
  • Securely receive other communications like text messages, photos, and videos… READ MORE

More Oklahoma 911 call takers need training to give CPR over the phone, American Heart Association says

by | May 14, 2021 | Comm Center News

ROGERS COUNTY, Okla. — The American Heart Association is pushing for more 911 call takers in Oklahoma to be trained in Telecommunicator CPR, a technique that walks you through performing CPR over the phone in case of an emergency.

Rogers County call taker Jennifer Holden has used T-CPR a handful of times in less than two years on the job.

She received training about a year ago and says it allows her to walk whoever is on the other line through CPR even if they’ve never been trained… READ MORE

Network aids Ellis tornado response (TX)

Network aids Ellis tornado response (TX)

by | May 14, 2021 | Comm Center News

Ellis County's new communications tower was crucial in coordinating emergency responses after the May 3 EF-2 tornado that hit the county.

Following a tornado that touched down near Forreston on May 3, Ellis County’s emergency services led a coordinated and efficient response, thanks to a newly-integrated public safety communications network. By investing in a new communications tower, a new dispatch system, and improved mobile radios, the county enabled various volunteer, municipal, and county-level emergency service organizations to communicate with one another in real-time for a unified response operation.

The new network, which first went live less than two weeks before the tornado, quickly proved its worth in emergency situations. For the first time in Ellis County, first responders from multiple agencies communicated directly with one another via a county-wide network rather than waiting for messages to be relayed across different sub-channels and uncoordinated radio towers. The potential for miscommunication and delay of vital information was greatly diminished, and the task-delegation process for emergency services was streamlined…