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Newsletter
9-1-1 MAGAZINE e-newsletter
April, 2013
Breaking News
'Almost impossible' for firefighters to evade surprise attacks, says expert
Of all the scenarios firefighters train for, confronting a hostage-taker might not seem to be high on the list. Or suddenly dodging a sniper's deadly aim. But training and keeping calm apparently did come into play last Wednesday [Apr. 10] when four Gwinnett County (GA) firefighters became hostages while a gunman held off authorities. The situation ended with the firefighters free and the gunman dead at the hands of police.... Read More >
PowerPhone Issues Active Shooting Response Bulletin
PowerPhone, has published an Active Shooting Response (ASR) Bulletin for public safety agencies. The free bulletin may be used as agencies see fit in preparing and equipping their call takers and dispatchers with effective instructions to deal with an active shooting event.... Read More >
Features
Is Your PSAP Ready for NG9-1-1?
By Edward P. Thomas Jr, Stratus
NG9-1-1 will bring to PSAPs a whole new level of emergency response capabilities. The ability to receive and share multimedia information will have a huge impact on public safety. By providing law enforcement, fire fighters, EMTs, and other emergency crews with more detailed and complete information about the situations they are about to encounter, they will be better prepared to perform their jobs successfully. ..... Read More >
The California Mobile Command Center Rally
9-1-1 Magazine sponsors the 5th Annual event that demonstrates the interactive capabilities of public safety mobile command and communications units throughout the state. Held on May 8th this year, the Rally allows public safety professionals to see up-close the capabilities of the command and communications resources in the region while exchanging ideas for developing or enhancing their own mobile communications units… Read More >
The Mobility Edge: Innovative Technology for Public Safety
By Marc Costa, MIRS
The Emergency Services professions all across America are facing some tough challenges. The result has been a reduction in manpower and resources in all areas of Police/Fire/EMS. Despite these cutbacks, the public still wants the safety and security of their families provided for. The only solution to these mounting issues going forward is simple, Police/Fire/EMS need to begin adopting to the new innovative technologies beginning to become available. These new innovations will allow these...Read More >
New Products
New hybrid power tower site from Pepro runs for months without refueling
Pepro LLC, a leading manufacturer of shielded enclosure systems for stationary and mobile applications, is announcing its Hybrid Scout. The Hybrid Scout is a highly configurable mobile radio tower site that runs on hybrid power, capable of providing more than a month of uninterrupted service for emergency and public safety communications depending on the equipment used. ...Read More >
New Electronic Earplugs Protect Ears and Boost Hearing
Originally developed to protect soldiers from deafening blasts and noise in the field - while also providing the advantage of amplified hearing in quiet situations - EB15-LE electronic earplugs from Etymotic Research are now available for police and fire departments....Read More >
Featured Columnists
What Use Our Work?
By Barry Furey
As April rolls around again, we spend time educating the public about 9-1-1 and honoring our brightest and best employees. But, it seems to me that one thing we rarely do is sit back and take a long hard look at what it is that we really do, because absent of the speeches, proclamations, and news clips lies this measure. And what we really do is pretty darn good. ....Read More >
She Fell - A Lesson from a Flock of Geese
By Sue Pivetta
Here in the Northwest we often are privileged to hear the familiar honking of Canadian geese as they fly low in their well-known "V" formation to some unknown destination. We know that flying in this formation allows the flock to fly further together than they could alone - thus they are often used to represent how much more efficient and effective we are when we cooperate. Teamwork in a 9-1-1 Center shares that kind of dynamic, and its absence can be as keenly felt....Read More >
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9-1-1 MAGAZINE e-newsletter
March, 2013
Breaking News
NICE Opens Nominations for 2013 PSAPs' Finest Awards
Nominations are now open for the 2013 PSAP's Finest Awards, an annual program that recognizes exceptional people involved in public safety communications. Nominations are accepted in four PSAP (Public Safety Answering Point) categories: Director, Line Supervisor, Technician, and Telecommunicator of the year. NICE introduced the awards program in 2006 and has recognized 31 individuals since then.... Read More >
PowerPhone Issues Active Shooting Response Bulletin
PowerPhone, has published an Active Shooting Response (ASR) Bulletin for public safety agencies. The free bulletin may be used as agencies see fit in preparing and equipping their call takers and dispatchers with effective instructions to deal with an active shooting event.... Read More >
Features
The Facts About 1-1-2 vs. 9-1-1
You may have seen recent posts on social media sites urging people in the U.S. to dial 1-1-2 rather than 9-1-1 in certain emergencies. This is bad advice. The posts claim that 1-1-2 is especially effective if you are being pulled over in your car and want to ensure that you are dealing with the police. It also claims that by dialing 1-1-2, your call will be answered faster and may go directly to the police. Here are the facts…. Read More >
The Importance of Doing a Sit-Along with a Dispatcher
Most people are familiar with a ride-along: the opportunity for a member of the public to "ride along" with a police officer during a patrol shift responding to calls for service. You have probably seen popular television shows, like COPS for example, where you see the excitement of police officers driving with lights and sirens activated to go help someone. But what about the dispatcher who first answered the 9-1-1 call before the officer was even sent to help......Read More >
Books
Free e-book: Stress & the Emergency Dispatcher
Stress and the Emergency Dispatcher was written by former dispatcher, and stress management educator and consultant, T.P. McAtamney, the founder of Headsets911 - The 911 Dispatcher Stress Experts. The book provides a philosophical perspective, developed from personal experience, to help understand the nature and causes of stress, and offers stress management and coping strategies....Read More >
New Products
Smart911Connect Provides Solution Providers and App Developers a Method for Delivering Data to 9-1-1
Rave Mobile Safety, creators of the national public safety database Smart911, has announced Smart911Connect, the first program connecting third parties holding data relevant to the emergency response process with supported 9-1-1 centers. Call takers and dispatchers within Smart911 connected public safety answering points (PSAPs) across the country can now automatically receive approved sources of data, including text and images, delivered to their workstation in real-time alongside a 9-1-1......Read More >
Outerlink Releases First Satellite IP Push-to-Talk Solution for Helicopter Communications
Outerlink Global Solutions, the leading satellite tracking and first-responder communications provider for mixed air and ground fleets, today announced the launch of Communique HUB, providing the first of its kind, multi-modal, data communications and processing platform for aviation and ground fleets....Read More >
Featured Columnists
From The Chair: "Scanner Land!"
by Paul D.Bagley
You just sat down to begin your shift. The cluster of screens before you glow brightly, and the radio test revealed no problems. Before long, you will handle the fire on Broadway, the domestic violence on State Street, and the fender bender at the mall. And of course you will wonder if the hundreds, if not thousands, of people looking over your shoulder will approve of the way you're doing your job. The latest installment of "From the Chair" takes an irreverent look at the love-hate......Read More >
9-1-1: An Emerging 'Hidden' Career
by Sue Pivetta
Why is it that Police, Fire and EMS in almost every community have college and High School criminal justice, fire science, or emergency medical training, but no such career training for 9-1-1 since every police, fire, or EMS agency has a corresponding number of emergency telecommunicators to hire?..... Read More >
From the Field
From The Field: Haddonfield NJ High Angle Rescue for Crane Accident
On February 7, 2013 at 12:30 a high angle rescue was dispatched in Haddonfield, New Jersey, at 520 Woodland Ave. Crews arrived to find a crane that tipped and was suspended in air supported by the outriggers. One occupant was injured on the roof. The uninjured operator was trapped in the vehicle by live wires on the roof. .... Read More >
Featured Video
Actress Halle Berry takes THE CALL as a 9-1-1 dispatcher in new movie
From movie director Brad Anderson comes a new film that is sure to intrigue 9-1-1 professionals. In a time where field responders seem to get all the glory in Hollywood moviedom, Anderson's new film, THE CALL, stars Halle Berry as a Los Angeles Police 9-1-1 dispatcher whose close call from a killer takes her from the console to the streets......Read More >
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9-1-1 MAGAZINE e-newsletter
February, 2013
Breaking News
New Study: 78 Percent of Emergency Communicators Will Attend an Online Class this Year
PowerPhone's survey is the first to look at online learning as it pertains to emergency communications nationally. Based on responses from 1,200 dispatchers, call takers, supervisors, directors and managers, the results show an industry ready to embrace eLearning.... Read More >
National Association of State Fire Marshals Issues Call to Action Following Nightclub Fire in Brazil
The National Association of State Fire Marshals (NASFM) extends its deep sympathy to the families of the more than 230 individuals who perished in the tragic nightclub fire in Santa Maria, Brazil, in the early morning hours of Sunday, January 27. It is, unfortunately, a sad reminder that the world has not learned the lessons of similar fires in modern nightclubs over the past decade.... Read More >
Features
Addressing Misunderstandings About Text-to-9-1-1: An Interview with NENA's Barbara Jaeger
The public's desire to contact 9-1-1 by the latest of communications technologies - SMS texting, in this case - has led to new technologies that allow callers to report crimes via text message to 9-1-1 PSAPs... The availability of this technology means that the 9-1-1 Centers are going to have to find a way to receive this new form of texted 9-1-1 call... 9-1-1 magazine recently interviewed Barbara Jaeger, ENP, President of the NENA Executive Board, about this important issue..... Read More >
Let's Do An Exercise! Ok How Do We Include Communications?
Public safety agencies are very efficient with routinely conducting exercises that test various response components. However, compressed response timelines or the ability to talk face-to-face make it difficult or impossible to fully utilize the types of radio communication that would be experienced in a real world response. In Georgia we recognized the need to think outside the box and identified the need to evaluate the communications component the same way we evaluate the exercises....... Read More >
Archived From Our Magazine Back Issues
Bringing Home America's Astronauts: The Shuttle Columbia Incident - Search & Recovery in Texas
In honor of the 10th Anniversary of the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster, we present this article which covered the Search & Rescue operations to recover the remains of the Shuttle and its crew in Texas. During the Feb 1, 2003 incident, FEMA deployed three Incident Support Teams and six Human Remains Recovery Canine Teams from its US&R system in order to successfully recover the astronauts’ remains from a debris path spread across Texas and into Louisiana. This mission was accomplished within two weeks. ... Read More >
New Products
SAR Technology Inc. announces 'Incident Commander Pro' 7.0 ICS Management Software
SAR Technology has released the latest edition of "Incident Commander," their premier software program for managing search, rescue and emergency response missions. Built on the Incident Command System (ICS) and based upon years of practical experience, "Incident Commander 7.0" provides a field-proven set of Command, Operations, Planning and Logistic functions to manage every type of emergency-response mission...Read More >
Stratus ftServer Systems With vSphere 5.1 for Critical Virtual Workloads
For VMware users with critical Tier 1 applications that demand zero downtime and zero data loss, Stratus Technologies, Inc. has announced that vSphere 5.1 virtualization software is now available on its newest line of Stratus ftServer fault-tolerant systems. Stratus is a global provider of products and services focused on protecting critical applications from system downtime.....Read More >
Featured Columnists
From the Chair: Preparing for the Unthinkable
by Paul D. Bagley
In this installment of From the Chair, Paul pays tribute to the dispatchers working in the Newtown (CT) Emergency Communications Center on the day of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. He goes on to discuss how they were able to control the chaos of the active shooter incident, and still maintain the order and normal function of their center. He concludes with a warning that what the Newtown dispatchers did would have been impossible without careful preparation and planning....Read More >
Recording Solutions: The Collaboration of Small Agencies Can Yield Big Results
By Bill Pryor
Many forward-thinking municipalities have started working together, pooling their budgets to implement the infrastructure or technology that they could not otherwise afford. Through collaboration, agencies in Minnesota - as well as Texas, California and Colorado - have profited by leveraging one system for multiple agencies through cost-sharing technology acquisitions......Read More >
From the Field
Firefighters Travel to Long Island for Hurricane Sandy Relief Project
Photo Story: Between December 14 and 17, Canadian photographer Mitchell Brown joined 19 firefighters from Tennessee, North Carolina, Ohio, New York and Maryland to lend a hand in Breezy Point, New York, helping rebuild homes damaged by Hurricane Sandy..... Read More >
White Paper
Stratus White Paper: What You Need to Know About Migrating to Next Generation 9-1-1 Technology
As mobile phone use skyrockets and texting becomes a preferred mode of communication, the 9-1-1 system needs to evolve to catch up. That's what Next Generation 9-1-1 technology is all about... The Stratus white paper, "What You Need to Know About Migrating to Next Generation 9-1-1 Technology," will help you understand what's involved in upgrading your Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP) to NG9-1-1.....Read More >
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IDV Solutions has integrated its Visual Fusion data visualization software with technology that enables public safety agencies to share emergency information in real time. The Visual Fusion integration with Unified Incident Command & Decision Support (UICDS) was demonstrated during a multi-agency simulation of a terror attack.... Read More >
C4i, with support from the National Park Service, developed an integrated solution: C4i's SwitchplusIP dispatch console system housed in the main control facility, which was then connected via Ubiquiti high-speed wireless IP links to C4i's Radio Interface Units (RIUs) on the peak.....Read More >
The challenges facing today's 9-1-1 administrators, coordinators, directors, and/or managers are forcing them to decide how and when to proceed; and how to fund changes. These issues are forcing these professionals to attempt to wear many cloaks or, at best, to become multi-faceted in their technical, budgetary, and operations and training knowledge and abilities in order to most effectively respond to the changes. Due to these realities they need to be systemically diversified in their..... Read More >
We subjected a number of suppliers and their products to exhaustive and thorough analyses, one of which was a 99.99% uptime requirement as a minimum standard for the total solution. The new industry-standard hardware and software products from the County's current vendors ultimately prevailed in the RFP process, with the added feature of virtualization. The Windows-based CAD system would run in virtual machines on fully redundant ftServer hardware from Stratus Technologies. The software.....Read More >
Tiburon, Inc. has launched a new mobility solution that delivers real-time dispatch and CJIS data to low-cost iPad devices. For the first time the power of situational awareness and total mobility is available to all public safety professionals in the field.....Read More >
Matrox Graphics Inc. has announced Matrox MuraControl for Windows video wall management software to configure, operate, and otherwise take full advantage of video walls powered by Matrox Mura MPX Series output/input boards....Read More >
by Paul Bagley
The ultimate evolution of the 9-1-1 system is the elimination of jurisdiction based PSAPs. In their place would be a virtual nationwide network of PSAPs. It would no longer matter which 9-1-1 center receives a call, or by what method. Every PSAP regardless of its physical location would have the ability to dispatch local resources anywhere in the country. Such a system will require significant advances in present technology.....Read More >
by Barry Furey
In early October, David Givot, a practicing attorney and former paramedic published an op-ed piece entitled "Humans vs. Toys: What Happened to Dispatch Discretion?" While investigation related to the story that prompted this article continues, Mr. Givot's missive probably stirred up more discussion than did the catalyst for the conversation... The article - and subsequent online conversations - can lead us down some interesting paths.....Read More >
Matrox Graphics Inc. has announced Matrox MuraControl for Windows video wall management software to configure, operate, and otherwise take full advantage of video walls powered by Matrox Mura MPX Series output/input boards.....Read More >
About 4 p.m. Friday, Nov 30, New Orleans paramedics rushed inside the store for a man complaining of chest pains. When they loaded him inside the ambulance and prepared to transport him to the hospital, they discovered their vehicle had been booted by a store employee for parking improperl.....Read More >
Beyond my grief for the children and families of Newtown is a deep concern for the public safety responders of Newtown and the police, fire, and EMS dispatchers who shared their response and its aftermath... dispatchers who may not have witnessed directly but felt the event just as keenly in the voices of 9-1-1 callers and response units from the scene....Read More >
The 5th Industry Collaboration Event, or "ICE 5," resulted in heightened awareness of the requirements necessary for access to 9-1-1 by all persons in the Next Generation 9-1-1 (NG9-1-1) environment. NG9-1-1, which will soon replace today's voice-centric 9-1-1 system, is designed to support text messaging and multimedia communications; these widely-used communications methods are especially critical for improving interactions between those with hearing- and speech-related disabilities and.....Read More >
The National Emergency Number Association's (NENA's) Trey Forgety - Government Affairs Director - testified before Congress on Sept 12th about the northern Virginia 9-1-1 outages following the June 29 derecho...Read More >
Raytheon Company has begun equipping the motorcycle fleet of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department (LASD) with computers that provide a new level of public safety and efficiency capabilities. Approximately 100 motorcycles will carry the new, lightweight computers in saddle bags by the fall...Read More >
Technologies, applications, and the systems they run on are becoming more complex and more highly integrated, with more sophisticated features than ever before. It's putting a strain on PSAP's ability to keep up and manage these systems. When evaluating new Computer Aided Dispatch systems and related applications, the natural tendency is to focus on the software, the user experience it affords call takers and dispatchers, and how efficient and productive it enables them to be..... Read More >
On Oct 5th, Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick held his weekly cabinet meeting at the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency (MEMA) Headquarters in Framingham, where he joined Lieutenant Governor Timothy Murray and members of his cabinet to tour the newly renovated State Emergency Operations Center and received a demonstration of Ping4alerts!, a new public alerting technology for smartphone users.......Read More >
At 3:45 AM on April 29, 2007, a gasoline tanker caught fire inside the MacArthur Maze - an interchange of three major San Francisco Bay Area freeways with daily traffic of 230,000 vehicles. The intensity of the fire, and the difficulty accessing it through the maze of freeway ramps, melted the supporting guiders leading to a collapse of the interchange. Here's how Oakland area fire departments handled the incident..... Read More >
As the public safety community moves to deploy the Nationwide Public Safety Broadband Network (NPSBN), mission-critical communications users now have the first Android-based ruggedized LTE smartphone designed for first responder field use. The InTouch RPC-200 by Harris Corporation operates on both commercial and private LTE networks, giving users mission-critical PTT voice, data, video, location, text-based information and other future applications.... Read More >
Continuing to deliver on its commitment to the Public Safety Cloud, InterAct, a leading provider of incident-response and management solutions today announced the release of InterDEx, a next generation data sharing and agency interoperability platform. This nationwide platform allows public safety professionals to better communicate with each other and share data freely, simply and effectively even when they work for different agencies in different jurisdictions.... Read More >
By Paul D. Bagley
In the latest installment of "From the Chair," Paul takes a detour to discuss - perhaps rant might be a better word - his personal experiences in the dispatch center that were a constant source of aggravation. And the culprits? His own colleagues. The article is written humorously, but makes some important observations about the nature of the people who occupy the chair. You will certainly recognize the characters he describes, as they may be sitting right next to you; perhaps even the...Read More >
By Barry Furey
Overall, we've learned to deal, or at least make do with the technology, and the private firms seemed to at least offer some benefit to a unique niche in our population that we were under serving. Recently, however, there seems to be a new trend toward selling services with a broader appeal. But as appealing as they may seem to the public to whom they are marketed, some are raising questions within the 9-1-1 community...Read More >
Available as a self survey FLIP eBook (flash-driven page flipping eBook) and bonus Powerpoint Trainer, Compassion Fatigue is a very real stress related issue for our Comm Centers. The results of CF can be job burn-out, apathy leading to poor work performance, shut down of feelings leading to illness and increase stress levels. What causes CF, how can you see it and what can you do about it..... Read More >
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9-1-1 MAGAZINE e-newsletter
December 2012
Breaking News
IDV Solutions integrates Visual Fusion homeland security software
National Park Service Collaborates With C4i to Deliver Signal Range Extension
Features
The Next Generation 9-1-1 Administrator: The Need For Position Diversity
Case Study: Upgrades in Allegheny County for Continued Uptime Performance
New Products
Tiburon Mobility Solution for the iPad Launched
Matrox Simplifies Management of Emergency Management & EOC Video Walls
Featured Columnists
From the Chair: 9-1-1 Standards - Leveling the Playing Field
Protocols and Policies: The Necessity of Dispatcher Discretion
Featured Video
Matrox Simplifies Management of Emergency Management & EOC Video Walls
From the Field
Ambulance gets 'booted' while paramedics tend to emergency
Editors Desk
The Silence of the Innocents
9-1-1 MAGAZINE e-newsletter
October 2012
Breaking News
ICE-5: Advocates Collaborate to Enable Better Access to 9-1-1
NENA Outlines Lessons Learned From Derecho Power Outages
Raytheon to provide first-ever laptops to LA County Sheriff's motorcycle fleet
Features
My Server Crashed! Someone Call 9-1-1!
Archived From Our Magazine Back Issues
From the Archives: Maze Meltdown: The Story of a Unique Fire
New Products
First Rugged Smartphone for Public Safety LTE Networks from Harris
InterAct Announces InterDEx, the Next Generation of Data Sharing and Interoperability
Featured Columnists
From the Chair: Gripes, the Dichotomy of Dispatch, and the Sacred File
9-1-1 For Sale: The Politics of the Public/Private Partnership
Books
Compassion Fatigue - new book from Professional Pride
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