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Today FEMA held a webinar to review the results of the National EAS Test conducted on November 9, 2011. The more than 925 participants on this call showed the interest nationwide in this issue. To FEMA’s credit, they were very forthcoming in describing the double-audio experienced by most stations, as documented earlier here on AWARE.
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This post is Part 1 of 3 in a series of reports on the recent annual conference of the International Association of Emergency Managers (IAEM) held November 13-16 in Clark County, Nevada. See also Part 2 on CMAS and Part 3 on Federal presentations at IAEM.
The Common Alerting Protocol (CAP) received some good exposure at the IAEM conference again this year. A session on CAP given by Art Botterell and Jason Volk was great for keeping CAP in front of emergency managers.
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In two recent informal conversations with Federal Communications Commission (FCC) staffers it was stated that the FCC intends to release its revised Emegency Alert System (EAS) rules covering the use of the Common Alerting Protocol (CAP) in EAS alerts by the end of 2011. The Commission released its proposed EAS CAP rules on May 26, 2011, and has been considering the public comments it received on those proposed rules since that comment period closed on August 4, 2011. The rules the FCC intends to release by year’s end will be the final EAS CAP rules stated in an FCC Report and Order, and no further comment will be accepted on those implemented rules. Although the FCC says that there is far more follow-up on the National EAS Test being required by Congress and other parties than was originally anticipated, the Commission still feels it can meet its year-end target for release of the EAS CAP rules. Stay with AWARE for further updates.
During the month of September, AWARE will be hosting a series of posts from guest authors highlighting the five most significant innovations in the field of alerts and warnings in the past decade since 9/11. In this post, Gary Timm, veteran broadcast engineer and recognized expert in the field of alerts and warnings, discusses innovations in the the Integrated Public Alert and Warning System (IPAWS) and the Next Generation Emergency Alert System (EAS).
In June 2006, President Bush signed Executive Order 13407, charging the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) with developing “an effective, reliable, integrated, flexible, and comprehensive system to alert and warn the American people in situations of war, terrorist attack, natural disaster, or other hazards to public safety and well-being”, and it stipulated that the new system should provide “delivery of coordinated messages to the American people through as many communication pathways as practicable”. Thus the mission began, and the result is the currently-launching IPAWS Open Platform for Emergency Networks (OPEN). Continue reading »
As announced last week here on AWARE, the FCC has extended into 2012 the original September 30, 2011 deadline for broadcasters and cable operators to have Emergency Alert System (EAS) equipment installed capable of receiving alerts in the Common Alerting Protocol (CAP) format. The good news today from Wade Witmer, Deputy Director of the FEMA Integrated Public Alert and Warning System (IPAWS) Division, is that FEMA remains committed to having the IPAWS EAS CAP feed ready for use by broadcasters and cable operators by the original September 30th date. A web address URL will be announced shortly for programming into the EAS CAP units already in the field, and Deputy Director Witmer stated that FEMA will be sending frequent test messages for users to confirm continuity. He said that any real alerts will be relayed via the system as well, as local and state authorities gain access to IPAWS, and that the National Weather Service is slated to begin issuing weather alerts via IPAWS in November 2011.
Also of interest to broadcasters and cable operators is that Wade Witmer said he anticipates the FCC will issue its revised EAS rules addressing CAP by the end of the year. This is the first we have heard from anyone in the federal government on an expected timeline for these all-important rules. Stay tuned to AWARE for updates.
And while I have your eyeballs, please come back to AWARE tomorrow for my contribution to our AWARE Innovations in Alerting Series with my tip of the hat to our federal alerting partners FEMA and FCC, and their strides made in the last 10 years with IPAWS and Next Generation EAS.
