Technology & Communications Web Exclusives

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  • Call to Action: Broadband for Public Safety Responders

    On March 16, 2010, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) released the National Broadband Plan (NBP). This launched a new chapter in the ongoing saga of public safety's attempt to achieve a nationwide broadband wireless network for emergency...

    Article • September 2nd, 2010

  • National Wireless Network for Public Safety Inching Closer to Reality

    There is little debate that public safety personnel need their own nationwide, interoperable wireless network in order to communicate seamlessly and without competition from the private sector. There has been debate, however, over how to achieve such...

    Article • August 13th, 2010

  • Thermal Imaging Terminology

    The Fire Department Instructors Conference (FDIC) is one of my favorite activities of the year, as I get an opportunity to interact with firefighters from all over the world who come by the booth to talk about thermal imaging. The show allows me to...

    Article • May 27th, 2010

  • Mutual Aid for Dispatchers

    Many commonalities are shared by the suppression and communications functions of a fire department. Both must respond to emergencies at a moment's notice. Both rely on accurate information to do their jobs. And both require a minimum amount of...

    Article • May 27th, 2010

  • Firefighters Test SCBA 'Flat Pack'
    Firefighters Test SCBA 'Flat Pack'

    Firefighters in Prince George's County, Md. this week got the chance to test out a new SCBA "flat-pack" prototype.The device relies on pressure-vessel technology, which is intended to make breathing apparatuses smaller, lighter and more efficient than...

    Article • May 20th, 2010

  • Who Really Needs a Thermal Imager?

    All too often, I am confronted with the issue of whether a thermal imager is necessary. I have heard all kinds of reasons not to carry the thermal imager, including, "It's too heavy," "It will only slow me down," "I have too many other tools to carry...

    Article • May 5th, 2010

  • Sharing Pre-Plan Data to Improve Responses

    When an incident call comes in, what fire department doesn't want to respond as quickly as possible? Response, however, involves not just the speed with which firefighters must reach the scene, but executing tactics to handle the incident once...

    Article • May 5th, 2010

  • Accessorizing Your Thermal Imager

    When evaluating a thermal imager (TI), standardization is a common concern. It is much easier to manage training when all of the thermal imagers in a given fire department function the same way. When the imagers turn on the same way, colorize the same...

    Article • March 31st, 2010

  • Dispatch Times: Regulations Versus Reality

    Throughout history, the fire service has placed significant emphasis on speed, using propagation models as justification for shaving seconds off response times wherever and however possible. After all, the conflagration that we're rushing to is...

    Article • March 31st, 2010

  • Human Factors and Communications

    As a firefighter in Parker, Colo., Quinn MacLeod always had a particular reaction upon reading a new line of duty death announcement, he said. He noticed that they are usually attributed to just a few different causes, and wondered, “Why do we keep...

    Article • March 3rd, 2010

  • Fragile-Handle with Care

    Among the list of things that firefighters expect to be reliable are our rigs, our tools, our personal protective apparel and our breathing apparatus. Undoubtedly, these all have a significant bearing on our safety. However, few give much thought to...

    Article • March 3rd, 2010

  • 2010: The State of Fire Service Communications

    As we end the first decade of the 21st century, it is an appropriate time to take a look at the issues that have impacted fire service communications over these past 10 years. Many of the deficiencies in current systems — as well as many of the...

    Article • March 3rd, 2010

  • Emergency Responder Radio Coverage

    The problem — Firefighters enter a building responding to a fire. While for this column the type of fire is not important, the fact that personnel are inside the building is important. As firefighters approach the fire area, they realize the...

    Article • March 3rd, 2010

  • Emergency Communications: A Parallel Path

    Over the past several years, I have written about the hope for a national public safety broadband wireless network to provide affordable broadband capabilities for all public safety organizations across the nation at the tribal, local, state and...

    Article • March 3rd, 2010

  • I Can't Hear You, Can You Hear Me?

    This month, we focus on emergency communications, for the ability to hear and be heard can literally mean the difference between life and death for firefighters. At several recent incidents, in my position as assistant chief of the Tenafly, NJ, Fire...

    Article • March 3rd, 2010

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