Next Generation 911

Deputy Chief Eddie Reyes, Alexandria, Virginia Police Dept.Jake Knight, RedFlash Group

Next Generation 911

• What is it?• Why should you care? • How will it happen?

What’s Next Forum• American Ambulance Association• American Association of State Highway and

Transportation Officials• American College of Emergency Physicians• American College of Osteopathic Emergency

Physicians• Association of Metropolitan Planning

Organizations• Association of Public-Safety

Communications Officials - International• Governors Highway Safety Association• I-95 Corridor Coalition• International Association of Chiefs of Police• International Association of Fire Chiefs• International Association of Fire Fighters• National Association of Counties

• National Association of Emergency Medical Technicians

• National Association of EMS Physicians• National Association of State EMS Officials• National Association of State Fire Marshals• National Emergency Number Association• National Fire Protection Association• National Sheriffs’ Association• National Traffic Incident Management

Coalition• National Volunteer Fire Council• Transportation Safety Advancement Group

• Understanding the benefits of NG911 to Law Enforcement

Brief History of 911• 1969 – First 911 system deploys in Haleyville, AL• Landline ANI / ALI – Automatic Number/Location Identification• Enhanced 9-1-1 Program: Two Parts – Phase I and Phase II. – Phase I required carriers to provide the PSAP with the

telephone number of the originator of a wireless 9-1-1 call and the location of the cell site or base station transmitting the call.

– Phase II required wireless carriers to provide information that is more precise to PSAPs, specifically, the latitude and longitude of the caller.

– Phase II generally provides the callers location within 50 to 300 meters, depending on the type of technology used.

So What is NG911?• Next Generation 911 (NG911) will enable the

public to send emergency communications to PSAPs via text, photos, videos.

• Approximately 6,800 PSAPs in the United States.

• Today, it is estimated that only 1% or less have the capability to accept text only!

• www.today.com/video/today/51541990

Technical Stuff

• Three primary messaging standards to consider:– SMS-based – Generally allow 160 characters– IP-based – Any amount of text, as well as photos &

video – Real-time text – the recipient sees each character

or word in the message almost immediately after the sender types it

Not just a phone anymore

Times are changing

Improved Officer Safety

Robust Evidence Immediately

Text to 911

Better Service

Better Situational Awareness

Redundancy/Interoperability

Call For Service Statistical Data• Total calls (emergency & non-emergency) =

367,238• Total 911 calls (landline & wireless) = 91,146• Total wireless 911 calls = 67,577• Total calls for service = 51,182• 20,000 crime and incident reports

Events That Test E911 Capacity

• August 2011 – East Coast earthquake and Hurricane Irene hit DC in the same week!

• It doesn’t have to be a major incident!

What Are the Barriers?• Commercial providers continue to migrate to

all-IP networks. • PSAPs struggle to deploy Emergency Services

IP networks (ESInets) that will enable them to receive the full range of IP-based traffic, including voice, text, photos, video, and data.

• Staffing, staffing, staffing!!!• Text language is like a foreign language

Mavericks• 2009 – Intrado & T-Mobile affiliate launch SMS-to-

911 trial in Black Hawk County, Iowa.• 2010 – Marion County, FL Sheriff’s Office developed

an in-house text message to 911 system codenamed “ADD IT NOW”

• 2011 – Durham, NC deploy a SMS-to-911 trial in partnership with Intrado and Verizon

• 2011 – Harris County, TX & Cassidian Communications complete a successful “simulation” SMS-to-911 trial

Some Deployment Planning• If part of a region, plan and deploy as a region: – Meet, discuss and strategize deployment– Adopt the same standard in preparation for call transfers– Phased approach:• Text to 911• Photo & Video to 911• NG 911 data to vehicles

– Delay deployment until all carriers are ready– General consensus supports a web browser approach

because it provides greater functional capabilities

Southern Illinois - OBSTACLES

• No statewide NG 9-1-1 governance• No NG 9-1-1 standards at the time• No available funds• No ESINet• LEC issues• GIS• Regulations

Who is doing what?

• Federal• State• Regional/Local Authorities

What Can YOU Do?

• Embrace the change• Promote within your municipality• Share information and resources as standards

and systems are developed• Participate in regional efforts to plan & deploy

Questions?