Emergency Wireless Communications During Disasters

The recent U.S. hurricane disasters have got many of us thinking about the value of communications technologies as a resource for first responders during disasters both natural and man-made. Poor communications capabilities were an obstacle in rescue efforts during the 9/11 attack in New York, as well as during Hurricane Katrina.

It seems evident that flexible, robust communications systems would help police, fire, rescue, Coast Guard and other groups get moving more quickly and work more effectively, and help multiple agencies communicate better with one another in the crucial hours and days after a disaster. That belief was reflected in two stories I took note of this week, one from American Public Media's Marketplace business radio program from Wednesday, Sept. 28, 2005; and the other from a release that came through our TMCnet news feeds on Thursday, Sept. 29, 2005, from Motorola, "Motorola Calls for Congressional Action to Improve & Secure Nation's First Responders Communications Network."

On the Marketplace program, host Kai Ryssdal interviewed Reed Hundt, who was FCC chair during the Clinton administration. (You can listen to the story at "Whaddaya want, a whole phone system?")

The segment started out with former FEMA head Michael Brown's defense of poor communications after Katrina, in response to a congressional enquiry. What was he supposed to do, he asked, 'Drop a whole phone and radio system into New Orleans, lock, stock and barrel?'

Good question, really. Actually, Hundt thinks such a thing is in fact possible and can be done at relatively low cost by providing federal matching grants to municipalities to "build a national emergency wireless network for all first responders." He also thinks the FCC chair needs to be given the power to "put the commercial networks back online when they're knocked down."

The money to build the needed network is not inconsequential -- a billion dollars, says Hundt. But he points out that this amount is relatively a "drop in the bucket" when compared to total expenditures on communications services in the U.S. He says that "for small amounts of money we can really have universal access and that people will be able to get online and will be able to communicate by voice when they need to in emergencies" -- and this will especially be true for first responders.

The Motorola release covered comments by the company's vice president of technology, Gary Grube, appearing before the U.S. Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee at a hearing called "Communications Interoperability -- Communications in a Disaster."

Grube called on Congress to make much-needed improvements to the nation's emergency communications infrastructure. Specifically, Motorola wants the government to clear the 700 MHz radio frequency spectrum space and fund an interoperable communications system for first responders.

As I recall, clearing 700 Mhz is a controversial proposal, as it would deprive some consumers of television transmissions. Grube argues that now is the time to move ahead with the full transition to digital TV. This will free up 700 Mhz to allow for the buildout and operation of interoperable emergency communications networks. Motorola believes this will enable public safety agencies to "achieve interoperability among agencies, alleviate radio communications congestion, and implement high-speed data, imaging and video solutions for first responders."

Motorola's release quotes Grube in his testimony about the concept of "True Interoperability": "A key requirement is interoperability. It was too often the case that the responding agencies could not talk to one another. This interoperability challenge is not new and was not caused by Katrina or Rita. These hurricanes simply again exposed the real world problems and inadequacies. Spectrum, money, and planning are the solutions."

Grube says the nation should establish standards assuring that at least "minimal communications" can be restablished after an emergency anywhere in the country. This could be done by pre-positioning self-contained trucks equipped with portable radios powered by alternative energy sources, such as portable fuel cells.

In effect, it sounds to me as if Motorola is proposing that the nation develop just the capability suggested in a backhand way by former FEMA director Brown -- the capability to position rugged, portable communications systems and rapidly deploy them in the wake of a disaster. An exciting idea, and one that could save lives in the next big disaster -- if responsible parties commit resources and start working on it now, before that disaster hits.

AB -- 9/30/05