Broadband  |  2024-03-11

The Centre for Emergency Communication of the National Police, Denmark (CFB), together with the Fire services for the greater Copenhagen region has tested LTE radios for emergency communications.

In order to learn more about the possibilities of radio communication over 4G/LTE, the National Police’s Center for Emergency Communications (CFB) and the Capital’s Emergency Services under the auspices of the FREBI project have carried out a series of tests with a view to clarifying how the coverage is in larger buildings and underground facilities, where challenges are most often experienced with coverage on the emergency services’ SINE radios.
While the SINE radio network is based on Tetra technology, which is suitable for voice communication (mission critical communications), radio communication over 4G/LTE is a wireless and efficient way to transmit large amounts of data in areas where there is LTE coverage. Radios that are connected to an LTE network can communicate by sending and receiving data via radio signals, which makes it possible to create video streaming and share images – for example from an accident scene to the control centre.
Promising results with LTE
In the test in the capital, eight LTE radios were used, which the crew at Hovedstadens Firestation and Fælledvejens Firestation, respectively, were subsequently instructed to use, if the effort/exercise allowed it.
The result of the test shows that the users were very satisfied with the LTE radios and experienced good and efficient communication via the LTE network. The experience was particularly positive when the LTE radio was used indoors and in basements. Since broadband/LTE has been installed in virtually all buildings, the emergency services generally experienced a good LTE signal in places where there might otherwise be challenges with the signal on the SINE radio.
As with all studies, however, there are a number of uncertainties, and some caution should therefore be exercised in relation to broader generalizations. In order to extend the conclusion to more general assumptions, more tests covering more areas will be needed.
More activities on the way
In the coming years, CFB will launch several tests and pilot projects, which will, for example, investigate the possibilities in relation to the establishment of private networks and temporary coverage solutions for the communications of the emergency services.
In addition, as part of the new SINE contract, a new functionality will be implemented which enables the latest SINE radios to automatically switch to broadband in areas where SINE coverage is poor.

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News3 hrs 43 mins ago

The Daviess County Council put a hold on a request that would improve communication with first responders due to cost.“I believe the need is large enough to justify this $800,000 expense. The end result will be a county-wide communication system that all first responders can use in all areas. The end result is better response and communications for everyone,” said Daviess County Chief Deputy Sheriff Steve Sturgis. “I don’t think you can ever go wrong with improving public safety. That is why this is beneficial.”The proposal includes an almost $600,000 infrastructure project that would include adding a tower and upgrading the three existing towers. It would also include $267,000 for new radios for volunteer fire departments.
“I am a fan for the safety and security of our citizens, for sure. It would be a good thing, but at what cost? Even if we pay for the infrastructure, someone still has to come up with $267,000 for the radios,” said county council president Tom Schaffer. “I don’t know what the big rush is all of a sudden. We have a good system. What they want to do is expand it by adding a fourth tower. It seems like a lot of money to me, $600,000, to do that.”Sturgis told the council he believed that between the sheriff’s department, prosecutor’s office and the county’s E911 fund, they could cover about $100,000 of the cost.A check of available money in E911 accounts indicated that money may not be available.
“We thought we had found $100,000 that we could put toward it for the fire department radios, but after our discussions with the council, we need to go back and see what money is available,” said Sturgis. “I am going to get together with some of the council members and see where the money can come from.”“Even if they come back and say they can cut out $300,000, I don’t know that we could afford the other $300,000 right now. I think we need to see some of the dust settle on projects we are working on now. We are paying on the annex and the courthouse renovations,” said Schaffer. “There is always something that needs attention. Eventually, something is going to break. Something is going to pop-up.”The council is expected to continue discussion on the proposed improvements at the next meeting.In other business, the council appointed Schaffer, vice-president Marilyn McCullough, and Matt Meredith to serve on the wage committee. The committee will investigate and determine where wages should be set during the next budget session.The council approved a new software for the auditor’s office that will give county departments better access to the auditing system. The cost will be $4,000.The council appropriated $17,290 for benefits for a new employee in the clerk’s office, spent $4,850 on a new copier, allocated $17,806 in grant funding for Adult Protective Services, approved spending on a $10,000 grant for the Daviess County Health Department, and approved a $2,000 internal transfer for Daviess Superior Court to provide uniforms for the court staff.

Deploying paramedics, social workers and others to non-criminal emergency calls could significantly boost a police department’s ability to respond to criminal emergencies while reducing negative interactions with the community, according to new University of Maryland research.
A study based on Baltimore Police Department data published recently in Justice Quarterly showed that up to 57% of 911 calls could be assigned to non-police responders, which would free up at least 59 full-time officers, or about 9% of the department’s patrol personnel.
The study led by Luke Spreen, assistant professor at the School of Public Policy, and Greg Midgette, an assistant professor in the Department of Criminology and Criminal justice (CCJS), introduces a model to assess the impacts of call diversion programs, offering policymakers a tool for evidence-based decision making.
“Public safety is one of the most significant categories of municipal spending,” Spreen said. “Focusing exclusively on the costs of operating a civilian responder program ignores positive downstream benefits it is likely to generate, such as reductions in arrests.” The study was supported by Arnold Ventures and Abell Foundation grants.
Co-authors also include Distinguished University Professor Peter Reuter in public policy and CCJS and Associate Professor Lauren C. Porter and Assistant Professor Brooklynn K. Hitchens, both of CCJS. 
Their pathway, of sending civilian first responders to calls that don’t require armed officers, can help address questions of how police departments deploy their personnel, following a high-profile series of officer-involved killings of Black people, including Breonna Taylor and George Floyd. Recent studies have shown that police are more likely to use force when interacting with Black people, and that Black people are more likely to believe that police act unjustly.

Spreen acknowledged that shifting resources has a political dimension but said the landscape has shifted in the wake of incidents of police misconduct, along with growing evidence that diversion programs work.
Successful programs to divert low-risk 911 calls from police officers to civilian responders often start small, gradually scaling up to demonstrate effectiveness and build community trust. “We believe this is the correct approach,” said Spreen, “though our analysis suggests that most existing diversion programs may still be too small.”Case studies of call diversion programs in cities like Albuquerque, Atlanta, Denver and Houston help underscore the importance of investing in training for emergency call takers and dispatchers to identify suitable calls for civilian response.
“It is very challenging to parse exactly what event is unfolding from a 911 call, or how much danger it poses to the first responder,” Spreen said.
The researchers also called for the use of performance metrics to evaluate program effectiveness and guide future development.