More PSAP Consolidation Likely, Fontes Says

"It’s kind of sad when our 911 centers are locked in a voice-centric world,” Fontes said. “It’s essential that we have the same technology that you have at your fingertips and that first responders will soon have at their fingertips.” Fontes predicted there will be continuing consolidation among 911 call centers. He noted, for example, that Indiana has imposed a requirement that there only be two 911 centers per county. “You're going to see a natural evolution in large part due to the advances in technology that allows for sharing of information, [geographic information system] information and other location types of data services,” Fontes said. “You're also going to then be able to through that look at other cost savings and opportunities to operate in a virtual environment.”

Bill Smith, president of network operations at AT&T, said every disaster is unique, but the company’s response to Sandy seemed to go as well as could be expected. “Industry coordination that we had, facility sharing between carriers worked well,” he said. “Our fueling plan worked very well. We pre-staged over 100,000 gallons of fuel, and ultimately used almost 500,000 gallons of fuel, refueling our generators and providing fuel for our employees.”

The FCC should encourage carriers to cooperate following disasters, while safeguarding confidential information, Smith said. “I worry about getting explicit in publishing data carrier by carrier,” he said. “We work together without the fear that the next day there were going to be rankings published saying this carrier is a little bit better than that carrier.” AT&T conducted drive tests through the areas hardest hit by Sandy, and Smith said he was aware of which of his competitors were having problems with their networks. “We shared with T-Mobile because we had compatible technologies,” he said. “We loaned equipment trailers to another provider who lost equipment in a building in Manhattan and needed capabilities. We did that freely. We did that very willingly. But we did it without fear that it was going to be used against us in a competitive environment.” Microwave systems can play a big role when conventional cell sites go down, Smith said. “In a crisis, you do a lot of things that aren’t ideal and try to get service restored."

New Jersey Broadcasters Association CEO Paul Rotella said the Sandy aftermath points to the need to give broadcasters first responder status. Rotella also underscored the importance of radio. “There’s no other medium that’s as identifiable or related to their audience than radio,” he said. “It’s unique. It’s ubiquitous.” Some 42,000 New Jersey residents are homeless after the storm, he said. “When you're displaced, when you're in an apartment or in someone else’s house … you can have a little radio there to get your information, as opposed maybe to not having access to television or cable."

David Dodd, chief information officer at the Stevens Institute of Technology -- where the panel was held -- said storms like Sandy may become more common. “Superstorm Sandy was an extraordinary severe weather event, but I think the reality in the age of global warming is we inevitably have more of these,” Dodd said. “I think it’s critical to note that Superstorm Sandy and other events that are likely to occur will be regionalized and not local events.”