Officials Try to Clear Up Confusion About 911 Calls
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Confusion about the District's revamped 911 call center has spread across the city in recent weeks as misinformation has been posted on online community message boards and city officials have spent time parsing the definition of "emergency."
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State officials will step in and help local communities if they are overwhelmed during a disaster &#151; as they were in New Orleans when Hurricane Katrina hit &#151; according to a new Homeland Security Department plan that tries to clarify who's in charge during emergencies.
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SUMMERFORD, Ohio - A woman says her life was likely saved when she answered a hang-up phone call.    Mary Dhume was watching television Monday night when the phone in the next room rang...
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By Ana Ribeiro, The Roanoke Times, Va.  Feb. 24--Early Thursday afternoon, Rob Shields got a phone call at work that anybody would dread.   It was the Roanoke Fire-EMS Department.   But there was no fire.
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A laser beam was aimed at a police helicopter Friday &#151; one of several incidents involving aircraft across the country in the past week &#151; and federal authorities were questioning someone who had been at a house where they said the light had originated.
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(InfoWorld) - The U.S. Federal Communications Commission has adopted new rules requiring wireless telephone providers to move toward testing location-based emergency dialing service at the local level. The FCC late Tuesday opposed regulations that require wireless providers to phase in testing of enhanced 911, or E911, dialing services over the next five years. E911 allows emergency dispatchers to pinpoint the location of callers. Until now, wireless providers have been able to test and report the E911 location accuracy on a regional or statewide basis. But the new rules would require wireless carriers to provide the FCC with local accuracy information. The old way of testing "does not provide public safety with the information it needs to do its job effectively," said FCC chairman Kevin Martin. "Meeting location accuracy standards on average in the entire state of New York by providing enhanced 911 capability in Manhattan does not help first-responders in Buffalo." In many cases, E911 does not work well with wireless phones, critics have said. In some cases, callers can't be pinpointed closer than several hundred meters, or on the right floor of a high-rise building, critics say. FCC commissioner Robert McDowell said the FCC may be moving ahead too fast. In May, several wireless providers, tech vendors, and public safety advocatesÂ told the FCC they don't yet have a plan for better wireless E911, he said. "We must walk before we can run," McDowell added. CTIA, a wireless trade group, criticized the FCC's action. The wireless industry has is committed to improving location accuracy and the FCC's action will "hamper that effort," Steve Largent, CTIA's president and CEO, said in a statement. "I am concerned that the commission's action may lead to unrealistic -- and potentially harmful -- consumer expectations." CTIA wanted the FCC to move forward with a collaborative effort involving the wireless industry and public safety officials, Largent added. However, the National Emergency Number Association praised the commission's decision, calling the new rules a step toward improved safety. It is "essential" that the accuracy of E911 be improved, said NENA president Jason Barbour, 911 director for Johnston County, N.C.
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Verizon Wireless, the No. 2 U.S.  carrier, said on Friday more than 95 percent of its customers  had phones capable of identifying their location when they call  911 for help.
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Louisiana emergency crews discovered they still had trouble communicating with various agencies during a two-day mock hurricane evacuation, officials said Wednesday.
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Police and firefighters need more accurate data on mobile callers. The FCC has some ideas--but fixes aren't cheap.
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Fears are raised over a shake-up which will see more 999 ambulance calls answered by solo-response vehicles.
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A Portuguese detective brings an official voice to conflicting reports over the hunt for Madeleine McCann.
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a potential problem that led a national group of emergency-room doctors Monday to call for better preparation for the oncoming
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Popular program restricting cell phone use could also hamper emergency 911 services.
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SCOVILLE, Idaho -- When a blackout seemed imminent after a major storm, poor cellphone coverage nearly left Idaho's governor in the dark about the news. On another occasion, the state's top military official missed a key national security warning, also because of his cellphone.
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The message, "This call may be monitored for quality assurance purposes," is so common that many callers assume no one is listening. But they would be wrong.
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While TV viewers and radio listeners have long suffered through ear-piercing emergency-alert tests, the system has had a spotty record in actual crises. That's why critics are leery of plans to expand the system to cell phones and PCs. By Randy Dotinga.
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Don't be surprised if people in Pulaski County are confused about the time.