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“In an emergency, call 9-1-1” is one of the very first things we teach our children. “The 9-1-1 operator will send help.” This is taken as a given, a blessing that we take for granted. Over half-a-million calls are made to 9-1-1 every day. Whenever citizens need police, fire or medical assistance in a hurry, […]

In 2018, the United States commemorated the 50th anniversary of 911 emergency communications, which has saved countless lives since the first call was placed in Haleyville, Alabama. But while the world has seen the profound technological change in the past half-century in almost every field of human endeavor, emergency services have been slower to adapt […]

When a disaster such as a hurricane, flood or terror attack hits with such impact that the infrastructure needed to support emergency services and first responders gets compromised, what can be done? Since most every Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP) has call-taking, dispatch and other equipment on premise, there is a single point of failure […]

THE EVENT On January 2nd, 2019 at 2:00 PM, in a remote village in Mexico, a pregnant young lady goes into labor with no medical assistance around. Her family, understanding the situation, calls their local 911 line, asking for immediate help. The call-taker, realizing the delicate situation and sense of emergency, initiated a Carbyne session […]

Technology is enabling better management of risks and crises: With nearly 10,000 people killed and more than 95 million affected, 2017 sadly marked a record-breaking year for natural disasters worldwide, ranging from Hurricane Harvey and the massive earthquake in Mexico to Hurricane Irma and the mudslides in Colombia. Unfortunately, 2018 is turning out to be […]

“Homicides, suicides, domestic violence, car crashes. For most people, it’s the stuff of nightmares. For busy 9-1-1 emergency dispatchers, it’s all in a day’s work.” That’s how Northern Illinois University described the challenges facing our nation’s emergency call handlers, who labor day in and day out to keep U.S. residents healthy and safe in the […]

State of Mexico, Mexico   THE EVENT On Thursday, November 28th, a violent gang fight erupted outside of a student dorm on a college campus in Mexico. Caught inside the lounge area at the front of the dorm were a group of 12 female students who immediately locked the doors and called the police. Unfortunately, […]

Every week or so, we hear of another planned PSAP consolidation. And… it makes total sense from a technological and economic standpoint. What’s behind all this? Before the Internet and the smartphone revolutions, the emphasis was on the call taker’s personal familiarity with the local environment – knowing the street names, and where the schools […]

The very first question that a 911 Call Taker will ask you when you call is “where is your emergency?” First responders can only help you if they know where you are. Unfortunately, location is the most challenging aspect of a 911 call…until now. Thanks to the proliferation of cell phones and iOT devices, we […]