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The U.S. House Committee on Homeland Security last week passed by bipartisan vote a bill to authorize and modernize the Integrated Public Alert and Warning System (IPAWS), the overarching federal system for integrating various alert and warning components. Continue reading »
As we mentioned in a recent article, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) announced that wireless carriers not fully opted into the Commercial Mobile Alert Service (CMAS, also known as Wireless Emergency Alerts, or WEA) must notify their customers of this status by May 15, 2012–about five weeks after the April 7th initial rollout of CMAS.
On the other hand, those carriers who have decided to carry CMAS messages are beginning to notify their customers of their status in a variety of ways. Continue reading »
As the Commercial Mobile Alert Service (CMAS) prepares for its initial rollout in April 2012, AWARE is taking a closer look at this new system – and what it can learn from an existing technology, the Emergency Alert System (EAS). Both of these systems are based on alert originators sending alerts to voluntary disseminators (broadcasters and cable operators in the case of EAS, and wireless carriers in the case of CMAS) and on for delivery to the public on personal devices. While CMAS is just getting started, there are some existing EAS features which might prove useful for CMAS as its deployment progresses.
The National EAS test and recent CMAS testing have brought the spotlight on the FEMA Integrated Public Alert and Warning System (IPAWS) program from the public and Congress alike. On December 6, 2011, Representative Gus Bilirakis (R-FL) introduced H.R. 3563, the Integrated Public Alert Warning System Modernization Act of 2011. Also, recent statements from Senator Susan Collins (R-ME) indicate her plans to introduce legislation in the Senate soon.
While the path to enacting legislation is not yet certain and the exact language is by no means written in stone, this activity draws attention to the need for the IPAWS program to be formally authorized. Continue reading »
The past week has seen a number of devastating tornadoes cause widespread destruction across the Midwestern and Southern U.S. The storms between February 29 and March 5 have claimed the lives of at least 50 people and caused massive loss of property. The tornadoes were many and widespread: the National Weather Service’s Storm Prediction Center received 81 reports of tornadoes on Friday, March 2–just shy of the average number of tornadoes the nation sees in the entire month of March (87).
As cleanup efforts continue, much of the discussion around these storms has turned to the alert and warning systems in the various areas stricken: how well did they work, how did they impact the public’s actions, and what could be improved next time. Of course, the effectiveness of these systems will vary from county to county, and the final analysis is not yet in in many places. But there are a few interesting stories to note in how alerting systems performed during this punishing stretch. Continue reading »
