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SRA International, Inc. Strategy and Performance Group (formerly Touchstone Consulting Group)
With the National Weather Service (NWS) issuing Commercial Mobile Alert Service (CMAS) alerts in cities and towns across the U.S. on a near-daily basis, and FEMA’s list of IPAWS Alerting Authorities growing every month, AWARE decided it was time to send our CMAS Secret Shopper to Philadelphia.
Because Philadelphia has yet to be added to FEMA’s list of IPAWS Alerting Authorities, we anticipated a lack of familiarity with CMAS, also known as Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEA). However, we were surprised and delighted to discover that three of the four big four carriers’ local retail stores were showing a bit of brotherly love to WEA/CMAS – and we just may have NWS to thank for it. Continue reading »
AWARE staff writer Gary Timm contributed to this article.
Earlier this week, AWARE published an article summarizing several of the presumed priorities David Turetsky, the new bureau chief of the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau. Today, AWARE proposes several additional public alert and warning priorities Mr. Turetsky should consider as he moves forward in his new role with the FCC. Continue reading »
As AWARE previously reported, the Commissioner of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), Julius Genachowski, appointed David Turetsky as the Commission’s new Chief of the Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau in May 2012. Given this recent transition, we thought it would be a good opportunity to explore what priorities Chief Turetsky has for public safety communications.
To AWARE’s knowledge, Chief Turetsky has not issued a formal public statement regarding his priorities as Bureau Chief, but Turetsky’s recent speeches and statements to the Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials (APCO), the National Emergency Number Association (NENA), and the U.S. House of Representatives’ Subcommittee on Emergency Preparedness, Response, and Communications Committee highlight several probable areas of priority for Turetsky. Continue reading »
The focus of yesterday’s Integrated Public Alert and Warning System (IPAWS) Practitioner Webinar was “Reaching the Whole Community: Accessible Alerts and Warnings for Everyone”. Marcie Roth, Director of FEMA’s Office of Integration and Disability Coordination (ODIC), presented on ODIC’s efforts to assist local, state, and Federal governments in developing emergency programs in accordance with Federal civil rights laws and regulations. Federal law requires emergency programs to provide people with disabilities equal access to the same programs and services as the general population; physical access to locations where emergency programs and services are provided; and access to the same information provided to the general population using equally effective and timely methods. Here is a recap of the webinar and a few key points we came away with.
Source: FEMA ODIC IPAWS Practitioner Webinar Presentation, August 15, 2012
This past January, AWARE posted an article summarizing our visits to the big four carriers’ (AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, and Verizon) retail locations on the Upper East Side in New York City. This week, we visited some additional retail locations in New York City – this time in downtown Manhattan – to learn about the four carriers’ current efforts to inform customers about CMAS and how it relates to the carriers’ services and devices. Continue reading »
