Mobile Command Vehicle Operators of the World, UNITE!: "For many agencies, receiving interoperable communications equipment only replaces one problem with another. Yes, they now have the equipment they need to communicate with other responders on different bands and using different radio equipment. However, having such equipment doesn't automatically make a department's personnel knowledgeable in using it. Besides, even when the techs have read the manuals, the equipment tends to stay in the box until a crisis hits."

Interoperability Grant Meeting in Missouri: "The state's Chief Interoperability Officer Jim Lundsted convened an all-day planning session Monday, Nov. 5, in Jefferson City with public safety communications representatives from each of the nine Regional Homeland Security Oversight Committees (RHSOC) and the two Urban Area Security Initiatives (UASI) of Kansas City and St. Louis.

'The purpose of the meeting was to brief the communications reps from around the state on requirements of a $17 million federal grant available to Missouri and for me to gain insight as to how best invest this one-time grant money,' Lundsted said."

Sometimes, even at 800 MHz, no one in Anderson County can hear you scream: "ANDERSON COUNTY, S.C. — On the Smith-McGee Bridge at the Georgia border, the radios in Sheriff David Crenshaw’s car are dead. Once he turns right off Sara Simpson Road, onto S.C. 181, within 15 feet, the 800-megahertz radio in the car beeps to let him know he’s back in range and back in communication with Anderson County dispatch. His UHF/VHF radio works now as the crackle of another call lets him know where emergency personnel are needed. Dead spots such as this one are at the center of a decision to spend more than $8 million to join with the Palmetto 800 communications system and upgrade communication between emergency personnel."

APCO Data Interoperability Grant: "The Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials (APCO) International, in partnership with the IJIS Institute, was awarded a $450,000 grant from the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) under the U.S. Department of Justice's Edward Byrne Memorial Discretionary Grants Program. IJIS and APCO submitted the grant proposal for the development of a joint Public Safety Data Interoperability program."

Virginia to Establish Tactical Communications: "Governor Timothy M. Kaine today announced that the Commonwealth of Virginia has received a $1 million federal Byrne Grant to upgrade tactical communications capabilities. The grant was secured by the Rapid Deployment Solutions Interoperability Project (RDSIP), a public-private partnership between the Commonwealth and Sprint."

Chandramouli leads DoJ-funded project exploring dynamic spectrum access for public safety: "The National Institute of Justice, which serves as the research and development arm of the US Department of Justice, has awarded a three-year project grant to Dr. Rajarathnam Chandramouli, Thomas E. Hattrick Chair Associate Professor of Information Systems in the Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering at Stevens Institute of Technology. Chandramouli will serve as Principal Investigator of the project, titled, “Cognitive radio protocols and platform for dynamic spectrum access in public safety bands.”"

Need For Emergency Data Standardization - Government Technology: "The National Emergency Number Association (NENA) and the COMCARE Emergency Response Alliance outlined their shared vision for next generation emergency communications in a letter addressed to Denis Gusty, the Disaster Management Program Manager at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Office for Interoperability and Compatibility. Representatives from NENA and COMCARE called on DHS to lead the development of a next generation emergency data standardization project that would facilitate the exchange of data from a wide variety of emergency information sources."

WUSA9.com | Improvements For Area Fire Departments Since Sept. 11: "Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Chief Ronald Mastin says there has been great progress on building on regional cooperation since the attack at the Pentagon six years ago. While thought of as a successful operation, reports found there was room for improvement in communications and interoperability. Northern Virginia fire departments have been working together on a daily basis for more than 30 years. Some of what those departments have learned is helping pave the way for the future. D.C. Fire and EMS now has a Fire Operations Center that helps with coordination and communications for major emergencies and special days like Tuesday. In operation Tuesday, the center kept up on intelligence briefings and monitored emergency calls. "

abc7news.com: Bay Area Cities Unveil Emergency Communications System: "Different Bay Area police and emergency agencies are a step closer to being able to communicate with each other during an emergency. It's something called interoperability, and not having it is a real problem. Imagine the challenge when a cop in San Francisco can't use the radio to talk with an officer in Oakland. Oakland Police dispatchers currently can communicate with some jurisdictions, but in a widespread emergency the ability to talk directly to everyone affected would be essential. 'We're here today to say that we all get it,' said Oakland mayor Ron Dellums. Public safety officials from San Jose to San Francisco gathered at Treasure Island to recall the lessons of 9/11 and Katrina, as well as Loma Prieta and the East Bay hills firestorm."

City disappointed in pace of Wi-Fi network setup: "In the wake of Chicago's decision to call off its municipal Wi-Fi plan, officials in Aurora are turning critical of the recurring delays in setting up their own wireless network. It's been nearly a year since California-based MetroFi began installing Wi-Fi antennas on light poles across the city. It is now September 2007, the month during which city officials predicted the network would be completed. According to those same officials, MetroFi has only installed 149 of the 600 to 900 antennas that will make up the finished network."

Input: Heavy spending ahead for public safety interoperability: "State and local governments will spend an estimated $5.5 billion on interoperable public safety communications between 2007 and 2012, including $3.4 billion from federal sources, according to a new report from Input Inc."

Bapco Journal: interoperability - the case for ensuring joined-up communications: "In an exclusive article for the BAPCO Journal, Dave Rogers, Airwave's fleetmapping consultant & interoperability adviser, discusses the potential benefits of communication between Britain's emergency and council services

For central and provincial governments alike, the ability to communicate has always been vital for the dissemination and enforcement of power. Without his whistle, the 'bobby peeler' was an individual, effectively helpless in the face of even moderately concerted resistance. The whistle elevated the policeman to become part of a much larger whole and criminals knew that once it had sounded, any numerical advantage would soon come to an end. In short, it is the ability to communicate effectively that allows modern, social institutions to function as a cohesive unit."

Virginia Tech Reports on IT Performance During Shootings: "An internal review of Virginia Tech's information and communications infrastructure in the wake of the April shootings found that the campus telecommunication systems were 'dramatically stressed during the initial response period but performed adequately,' according to a report in The Roanoke Times. .... The report said that local cellular networks became congested and blocked calls during the initial response period to the shootings, according to the Times. It also found 'deficiencies in interoperability and coverage of police, fire, and rescue radio communications.' "

Bridge crash report lists radio problems -- Chesapeake Bay: "Rescue workers from five state agencies were unable to communicate with each other by radio when they responded to a fatal crash on the Chesapeake Bay Bridge in May, though officials said command procedures in place mitigated the issue.

'We're not aware that it materially affected the incident,' said John Contestabile, the Maryland Department of Transportation's director of engineering and emergency services. Battalion Chief Michael Cox, a spokesman for the Anne Arundel County Fire Department, said rescue workers from his county and from Queen Anne's County had radios that used the same technology.

Although the state agencies didn't, commanders were able to manage the response by using protocols developed after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, Cox said. Representatives from each agency assembled at a command post so that decisions made there could be communicated to all rescue workers in the field, Cox said."

FCC continues debate over public safety network: "At a conference of public safety groups earlier this month, Federal Communications Commission Chairman Kevin Martin said the FCC’s decision to authorize a nationwide wireless broadband network for first responders is historic. But he also pointed out that rules are not yet set for how that network will be shared with commercial providers and possibly other public safety networks."

Appropriators question funding for emergency wireless project: "The integrated wireless network, known as IWN, is currently one of the most expensive items in Justice's information technology basket and it is at high risk of failure, the report stated. Unless the deficiencies are addressed, such a system 'may not be developed and the resulting separate agency communications systems may not be adequate in the event of another terrorist attack or natural disaster.'

The House-passed appropriations bill, H.R. 3093, would fund the project at $81.3 million -- the same as the agency's budget estimate. But the Senate measure, S. 1745, would provide $76.3 million. The program got $89 million in fiscal 2007.

In the Senate committee report, lawmakers expressed concern about 'lagging progress, as well as the recurring costs of the conversion' to narrowband operations. The panel also noted that an aging infrastructure has been an impediment to implementation."

Burbank, Glendale Seek Link: "BURBANK — The future of a multi-agency response system in Burbank and Glendale is safe, even as Los Angeles County is pursuing a countywide network of its own. Conflict arose earlier this year as it became apparent that Burbank, Glendale and four other cities participating in the Interagency Communications Interoperability System, known as ICIS — which allows public safety departments to communicate across jurisdictional lines — were competing against the county for federal funding. advertisement

While county officials are seeking money for a planned network — called the Los Angeles Regional Interoperable Communications System — local system participants are also vying for federal help to finance maintenance and upgrades for an infrastructure that has been in place since 2003. That bred uncertainty among legislators in Washington, D.C., as competing requests came in from county and local officials pursuing similar technologies with similar goals in the same area."

Virginia to Cache First Responder Radio Systems - Government Technology "Virginia Gov. Timothy M. Kaine today announced that the commonwealth will establish three strategic radio caches in Chesapeake, Fairfax County, and the Harrisonburg region to improve the state's ability to establish communications in the wake of a disaster or other large-scale emergency."

Missouri law enforcement agencies will get funding: "SIKESTON — Local law enforcement agencies are among those receiving federal Law Enforcement Terrorism Prevention Program Interoperable Communications Grant funding but have not yet received official word along with how much they will get."

Homeland defense: Network system is broken: "The Pentagon’s ability to help civil authorities respond to a disaster or terrorist attack is hobbled by a “fractured national communication system” that remains an impediment six years after the Sept. 11 attacks, the nation’s homeland defense leader said this week.

Testifying before the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs on Thursday, Air Force Gen. Gene Renuart said communications problems make it more likely federal forces will be needed in a regional disaster.

“Whether responding to a disaster of natural or manmade origins, collaboration among interagency partners at all levels of government is built upon the cornerstone of communications,” Renuart said.

But six years after communications breakdowns kept rescuers in the dark on Sept. 11, “our nation continues to struggle with two distinct communications issues: interoperability and survivability,” he said."