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Last week, the First Responder Network Authority held an Agency Operations and Technology Workshop in Tamuning, Guam, with nearly 80 public safety stakeholders in attendance. Local, federal, and military agencies participated in the conference with representation from Guam’s Emergency Management, Fire, Police, DoD, and military. Representatives from American Samoa and Hawaii also participated in the conference.
Todd Early is announced as the new Chair of First Responder Network Authority’s Public Safety Advisory Committee (PSAC). Todd replaces Interim PSAC Chair Paul Patrick, who was named to the First Responder Network Authority Board. He brings more than 25 years of professional experience in public safety to this leadership role.
This year, the Public Safety Advisory Committee (PSAC) debuted new methods of working with the FirstNet Authority and its partner, AT&T, on advising their work towards the FirstNet mission. With the FirstNet network realized in 2018, this is bringing a new focus and flurry of work and activity to the PSAC in their advisory role.
The Washington County Sheriff’s office is leading the nation on transforming public safety communications and is putting FirstNet to use serving rural communities. The agency was among the first in the nation – and the very first in the State of Maryland – to subscribe to the nationwide public safety broadband network.
EMS using FirstNet are already seeing its possibilities and learning how the dedicated communication system dramatically supports their work in the field.
More than 3,600 agencies have now joined FirstNet, the nationwide public safety broadband network dedicated to America’s first responders. As public safety agencies sign up for FirstNet and tap into the key capabilities of their network, the First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet Authority) continues to work hand-in-hand with them to understand their current and future broadband needs.
Despite the cold rain and driving wind, hundreds of thousands of cheering spectators lined the streets of Boston to witness one of the world’s oldest annual marathons: the Boston Marathon. This year, the race took on added significance as it marked the five-year anniversary of the 2013 bombing.
Each October, law enforcement leaders come together to attend several significant events that recognize the past year’s accomplishments and challenges, and work together to identify solutions and goals for the future. These events include the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) Annual Conference and Exposition in conjunction with the Major Cities Chiefs Association (MCCA) Fall Meeting and the Police Executive Research Forum (PERF) Town Hall.
When the spotlight is on for a major national event like the Super Bowl, the opportunities to demonstrate cutting-edge public safety communications technologies abound. In addition to better game-day communications, there is often the belief that the investment in innovative technologies will positively improve day-to-day operations when the spotlight fades.
From day-to-day operations to emergencies and large events, lives depend on public safety's ability to communicate. FirstNet not only provides reliable "always on" connections, but also allows first responders to confidently send and receive data, voice and text transmissions with the security their life-saving mission demands.