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SRA International, Inc. Strategy and Performance Group (formerly Touchstone Consulting Group)
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 »
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. This post is the final of three on the CMAS Users Trial conducted in San Diego, authored by Stephen Rea, Senior Emergency Services Coordinator of the County of San Diego (California) Office of Emergency Services.
As part of a coordinated effort with Sprint and the California Emergency Management Agency (CalEMA), The County of San Diego Office of Emergency Services (OES) had a unique opportunity to become the first in the nation to test the Commercial Mobile Alert Service (CMAS, also known as the Personalized Local Alerting Network, or PLAN) on a large scale. During the October 2010 trial, over 50 imminent threat and AMBER alerts were generated. These alerts were received by 120 mobile phones preloaded with CMAS software. Our intent was to put PLAN through its paces by simulating large and small disasters ranging from earthquakes and tsunamis to hazardous materials spills.
Continue reading »
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. This post is the second of three on the CMAS Users Trial conducted in San Diego, authored by Stephen Rea, Senior Emergency Services Coordinator of the County of San Diego (California) Office of Emergency Services.
As part of a coordinated effort with Sprint and the California Emergency Management Agency (CalEMA), The County of San Diego Office of Emergency Services (OES) had a unique opportunity to become the first in the nation to test the Commercial Mobile Alert Service (CMAS, also known as the Personalized Local Alerting Network, or PLAN) on a large scale. During the October 2010 trial, over 50 imminent threat and AMBER alerts were generated. These alerts were received by 120 mobile phones preloaded with CMAS software. Our intent was to put PLAN through its paces by simulating large and small disasters ranging from earthquakes and tsunamis to hazardous materials spills. Continue reading »
