"Disaster Communications"
Mo. Capital City Looking to Upgrade Tornado Sirens
June 6, 2011Jefferson City, Mo. (AP) — Officials in Missouri’s capital city have decided to look into improving its aging storm warning system, after a deadly tornado hit the state’s southwest. Two of Jefferson City’s 15 warning sirens currently are not working, and many of its other sirens are several decades old.
Read full articleKenwood Donates Radios to Alabama Tornado Relief Effort
May 26, 2011Suwanee, GA: Kenwood recently donated 50professional LMR mobiles and amateur radios to the City of Tuscaloosa, Ala. In accepting the…
Read full articleEmergency Communications Needed
May 26, 2011After Sunday’s catastrophic tornado wrecked Joplin, Mo., police, fire, ambulance and other rescue groups reported a “widespread breakdown of communication systems” as they tried to locate 1,500 residents reported missing. Back in 2005, after Hurricane Katrina ravaged New Orleans, rescuers were forced to send runners with handwritten notes because various emergency radio systems couldn’t link to each other.
Read full articleSome Sirens Fail to Sound in Washington County, Minn.
May 23, 2011Stillwater, Minn. (AP) — The Washington County sheriff’s office is investigating after some warning sirens failed to sound during Sunday’s severe weather. After the National Weather Service issued a tornado warning Sunday, the sheriff’s office activated the outdoor warning sirens for central and northern Washington County. But first responders reported that sirens did not go off in some cities.
Read full articleA Modest Proposal
May 19, 2011Public safety has made great strides in achieving interoperability since 9/11. The focus on interoperability also highlighted the need to maintain operability during large incidents, such as earthquakes, tsunamis and storms. The traditional approach has been to build strong infrastructure and backup systems that can ride out the incident. However, it’s clear that the power of nature can’t be completely overcome.
Read full articleAlabama County Touts 800 MHz Radio System after Tornadoes
May 18, 2011Anniston, Ala. (AP) — In the wake of the April tornadoes that flattened many areas of northern Calhoun County, local officials have touted the region’s 800 MHz digital radio system for its effectiveness in coordinating disaster response.
Read full articleAm I Ready for the Big One?
January 14, 2011In recent years, there has been a lot of talk about readiness in the comm center. We have backup phone systems, backup generators, even backup comm centers. What about backup telecommunicators? I wanted to know, “What about me?” What if I were the one working (stuck) in the comm center when something big happens? Is there anything out there to prepare me? I did some research on communications preparedness, and I’d like to share my findings with other telecommunicators.
Read full articleUnconventional Ideas
January 13, 2011With more reliance on cellular and UHF radio communications, public safety organizations find themselves dependent on a modern technology infrastructure to support their inter- and intra-agency communications, and communications with the public. However, one major hurricane or winter storm could render most of the technology useless during the stage of the event that it’s needed the most. Here are six strategies to back up your agency’s communications.
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