Meeting some recent pointed criticisms, including from one of its own board members, about outreach to public safety, FirstNet will be soliciting public input from workshop attendees to help in the design of a public safety grade, next generation wireless network that will meet very specific requirements of police, firefighters, sheriffs, and emergency medical services personnel in their regions. These first responders may have different needs depending on their regions, dealing with a wide range of possible emergencies ranging from terrorist attacks, earthquakes, hurricanes, floods, tornados, wildfires, and the like.
“Consultations are an essential step in building working relationships between FirstNet and the thousands of people who are stakeholders in its success,“ commented the new General Manager of FirstNet, Bill D’Agostino, in a written press release. “These meetings will provide valuable opportunities to listen and work collaboratively to build the first public safety-grade LTE network.”
FirstNet announced that the regional workshops will be a two-day program beginning with the discussion of the changing nature of public safety since the 9/11 terrorist attacks on New York. The agenda includes an update on FirstNet progress, an interactive session on network development, multiple facilitated discussions between FirstNet and attendees, and stakeholder break-out sessions addressing specific challenges of implementing a public safety broadband network, including discussions between attendees and FirstNet and group-to-group peer exchanges. FirstNet Board member Jeffrey Johnson, a retired fire chief, said it is hoped that attendees will share information about their coverage and capacity needs, and the wireless assets and infrastructure they can bring to the table.
Schedule of Regional Workshops By Geographical Area
May 15-16 | Washington D.C. | Delaware, District of Columbia, Kentucky, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, US Virgin Islands, Virginia and West Virginia |
May 21-22 | Denver, Colorado | Colorado, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah and Wyoming |
May 29-30 | San Francisco, California | Alaska, American Samoa, Arizona, California, Guam, Hawaii, Idaho, Nevada, North Mariana Islands, Oregon and Washington State |
June 12-13 | St. Louis, Missouri | Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Ohio, Wisconsin |
June 19-20 | Boston, Massachusetts | Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont |
June 26-27 | Memphis, Tennessee | Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Texas |
This story was originally published at Techwire.net.
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