Public Safety
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The fire started shortly after a stranded sailor set off a flare gun last Friday and has burned more than 16,000 acres. The island is part of Channel Islands National Park and home to multiple rare plant species. -
More than 400 mostly small communities throughout the Northwest are at greater risk of suffering from impacts of wildfires than previously thought when socioeconomic conditions are factored into risk assessments, new research finds.
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Researchers at Florida International University used the school’s “Wall of Wind” to blow hurricane-force gusts at a manufactured home with the goal of determining whether stricter building codes are needed.
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The device, known as the Grappler, is part grappling gun and part lasso, and it is installed on the front bumper of sheriff’s vehicles so it can be shot onto a fleeing suspect’s back tires.
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A new civil grand jury report details gaps in emergency radio coverage across Monterey County, raising concerns about communication failures during fires and other emergencies.
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The Los Angeles Police Department has increasingly come to rely on small, unmanned aerial vehicles since launching a "drone as a first responder" pilot program in July.
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Cumberland County, Pa., will receive about $107,000 in state government funding in order to purchase body camera equipment for the staff at the prison and at the sheriff’s office.
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Breakthrough surveillance capabilities — drones and license plate readers — have played a pivotal role in catching Colorado Springs’ criminals and keeping law-abiding citizens safe.
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The City Council approved a six-year, nearly $1 million pact that will enable police to field the devices and obtain incident information before officers arrive on scene. The drones will likely cover dock areas.
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A partnership with weather technology firm Climavision will give state and local emergency managers visibility into weather conditions in areas that were previously unobservable and vulnerable to unpredictable weather events.
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A Connecticut-based company is aiming to have drones that will send real-time aerial data to first responders during wildfires, hurricanes and natural disasters by the end of the year.
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Staffing cuts and changes to balloon launch operations in 2025 at the National Weather Service have raised questions about whether critical information is being missed, impacting alerts for events like the recent Kansas tornadoes.
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After three people died during an EF3 tornado on March 6, Union City leaders were concerned the existing sirens weren't loud enough. The new system is designed specifically for severe weather alerts.
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All Omaha firefighters are certified EMTs but not all are certified paramedics. To make certification easier, a mobile simulation lab, jointly operated by the Omaha Fire Department and Creighton University, is coming to them.
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The deal provides Motorola Solutions with HyperYou’s agentic AI for handling nonemergency calls, as well as real-time language translation. The general idea is that AI can help alleviate call center staffing shortages.
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Louisiana’s most populous city is the latest government to have an AI agent answer 311 calls instead of a human. The shift will happen in coming months; the AI has been trained on three years of 311 calls.
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Born from the chaos of 9/11, FirstNet provides a mobile phone network designed for public safety professionals. The new deal comes as the U.S. Congress considers a 10-year reauthorization of FirstNet.
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A new AI tool is being deployed in California cities, offering a software platform that ingests large volumes of digital evidence in order to make it searchable and easier to sift through for detectives.
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Law enforcement has invested time and money in technologies like digital forensics and drones, but using analytics to quantify community feedback could help with recruitment, retention and public trust.
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SKYWARN is a public service program that asks volunteers to help keep their local communities safe by providing accurate reports of severe weather to the National Weather Service.
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At the Emergency Medical Services Academy in Clatsop County, Ore., teens get firsthand exposure to emergency medicine and rotate through ambulance services, fire departments, hospitals and the Life Flight base.
