NCJ Number
230958
Journal
Law Enforcement Technology Volume: 37 Issue: 5 Dated: May 2010 Pages: 40-47
Date Published
May 2010
Length
8 pages
Annotation
This article describes the work that was done to establish communications among emergency service workers in Haiti after the earthquake of January 12, 2010.
Abstract
The earthquake destroyed Haiti's entire police Land Mobile Radio (LMR) system, a three-site trunked system, along with much of the country's wire-line infrastructure. After assessing the situation, workers focused on immediate 114 restoration (Haiti's equivalent of 911). Workers first routed 114 calls to cell devices, since cellular carriers were still up and running with generators and additional power supply sources. This provided a good foundation with which to receive calls. Next, the workers found an intact structure from which they could dispatch help. The building was able to have radio coverage that handled walkie-talkies, mobile radios, and handheld radios. Another consideration was providing police, fire, and emergency medical services with the radios, external antennas, and power supplies needed to dispatch workers to emergency calls for help. The communication-technologies team set up a two-antenna, trunked, 800 MHz rapid-deployment LMR system. An NACS mobile communication truck was sent to Haiti on behalf of the Office of Special Envoy. The NACS truck is also equipped with training materials and an abundance of telephone lines and VoIP (Voice over IP) lines through a stand-alone satellite system. A server computer offers full GIS mapping. A number of organizations continue their efforts to rebuild Haiti's fractured 114 services and provide radios and supplies to the people who are best equipped to administer aid. One of the most significant challenges in this task is the international collaboration that must occur among several entities. Haiti has come from the point of absolutely no communication to a point where it now has basic fire and emergency medical service communications, along with very basic 114; however, it will take time before the 114 system is improved.