Thursday, June 16, 2005
NINE ONE WHAT
THIS BLAH-GER IS VERY UPSET !
WHY ? I have warned the 911 people through this Blah-g (and I know they read it) that a major system CRASH could happen at anytime. I also stated that 911 had better be prepared for such a CRASH.
Today the system did just that, it CRASHED ! Not once but twice. The first time the CRASH lasted at least 3 minutes (source: 911 personel)!
911 was NOT prepared !
I WOULD BET THAT THE WESTMORELAND CO. EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT TEAM DOES NOT HAVE A TECHNICAL ADVISOR ON STAFF.
I’m talking about someone with an electronics background that would be able to at least understand the system as well as any MOTOROLA tech. A degree in electronics isn’t a mandatory requirement but would help. What should be a mandatory requirement is SMARTS ! If a red light comes on you don’t want someone to be able to “find out why” the light is on, you need someone that KNOWS why the light is on AND what to do about it. Today that light went on several times and no one had a clue.
Did I mention that I am upset… sorry, I’m not upset. I’M PISSED !
Let’s play WHAT IF. What if…
I needed police here immediately, someone’s breaking in !
My Dad fell and an ambulance is needed !
There is grease fire on the stove !
Now at least in this city I KNOW for a fact that Latrobe Police do NOT monitor their old VHF dispatch frequencies ! How do I know this ? Recently on several occasions the State Police have called the Latrobe Police on 154.740 Mhz and they do NOT answer. That is how I know. That would be their back up frequency and someone would have to tell them to SWITCH to that frequency, right ? So if 911 cannot call them on 800 Mhz to tell them to switch because 911’s 800 Mhz is out, then how will they find out ?
MAYBE THEY WILL READ IT HERE FIRST !
= = = = = = = thinking . . . . . . . = = = = = = =
This piece may or may not make any sense as I am going to think out blah-ged about this situation.
911 has, at their figure tips a radio system that controls most emergency communications within Westmoreland County. If the system goes down then 911 cannot talk to any emergency radio vehicle and those radio vehicles cannot talk to each other. So basically when that system goes down no one can talk to each other.
Stat Medivac operates Medical Helicopters. When an engine fails on one of their helicopters does it fall to the ground ? NO ! Why ?
Because each Medivac chopper has two engines !
A trucker going down I-80 sees he is getting low on fuel, should he worry ?
No, because he has an extra back up fuel tank !
I go to the store to buy food and open my wallet to pay for my food and there’s no money, should I worry.
No, because I have credit cards !
PLANNING, BACK UP – BACK UP – BACK UP, REDUNDANT SYSTEMS !!!
All larger alarm system monitoring companies have Satellite Monitoring Centers. No, they aren’t controlled by a satellite in space, they have another center just like the first one that can take over in a heart beat should one center go down. The data stored at these centers is backed up more than twice in case of a CRASH.
= = = = = = = still thinking = = = = = = =
Which brings me back to the 911 Radio System CRASH of today. This system was not designed correctly and should be looked at from start to finish. PERHAPS FROM AN OUTSIDE COMPANY OR ELECTRONICS CONSULTING FIRM. We are not talking about a crappy $400 DELL computer system. This is a multi-million dollar system ! I’ve read a lot of the specs on the equipment they are using and the specs say that their equipment will not fail. So if their equipment won’t fail, it must be the T1 phone lines, the Motorola Radios, or poor design ! What else could it have been, DISPATCHER FLU ? I think not.
THOSE ARE MY VIEWS. PERHAPS WE SHOULD CALL A MEETING OF THE WESTMORELAND COUNTY COMMISSIONERS. I WONDER IF THEY EVEN KNOW WHAT IS GOING ON ??? DO THEY HAVE RADIOS ???
WHY ? I have warned the 911 people through this Blah-g (and I know they read it) that a major system CRASH could happen at anytime. I also stated that 911 had better be prepared for such a CRASH.
Today the system did just that, it CRASHED ! Not once but twice. The first time the CRASH lasted at least 3 minutes (source: 911 personel)!
911 was NOT prepared !
I WOULD BET THAT THE WESTMORELAND CO. EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT TEAM DOES NOT HAVE A TECHNICAL ADVISOR ON STAFF.
I’m talking about someone with an electronics background that would be able to at least understand the system as well as any MOTOROLA tech. A degree in electronics isn’t a mandatory requirement but would help. What should be a mandatory requirement is SMARTS ! If a red light comes on you don’t want someone to be able to “find out why” the light is on, you need someone that KNOWS why the light is on AND what to do about it. Today that light went on several times and no one had a clue.
Did I mention that I am upset… sorry, I’m not upset. I’M PISSED !
Let’s play WHAT IF. What if…
I needed police here immediately, someone’s breaking in !
My Dad fell and an ambulance is needed !
There is grease fire on the stove !
Now at least in this city I KNOW for a fact that Latrobe Police do NOT monitor their old VHF dispatch frequencies ! How do I know this ? Recently on several occasions the State Police have called the Latrobe Police on 154.740 Mhz and they do NOT answer. That is how I know. That would be their back up frequency and someone would have to tell them to SWITCH to that frequency, right ? So if 911 cannot call them on 800 Mhz to tell them to switch because 911’s 800 Mhz is out, then how will they find out ?
MAYBE THEY WILL READ IT HERE FIRST !
= = = = = = = thinking . . . . . . . = = = = = = =
This piece may or may not make any sense as I am going to think out blah-ged about this situation.
911 has, at their figure tips a radio system that controls most emergency communications within Westmoreland County. If the system goes down then 911 cannot talk to any emergency radio vehicle and those radio vehicles cannot talk to each other. So basically when that system goes down no one can talk to each other.
Stat Medivac operates Medical Helicopters. When an engine fails on one of their helicopters does it fall to the ground ? NO ! Why ?
Because each Medivac chopper has two engines !
A trucker going down I-80 sees he is getting low on fuel, should he worry ?
No, because he has an extra back up fuel tank !
I go to the store to buy food and open my wallet to pay for my food and there’s no money, should I worry.
No, because I have credit cards !
PLANNING, BACK UP – BACK UP – BACK UP, REDUNDANT SYSTEMS !!!
All larger alarm system monitoring companies have Satellite Monitoring Centers. No, they aren’t controlled by a satellite in space, they have another center just like the first one that can take over in a heart beat should one center go down. The data stored at these centers is backed up more than twice in case of a CRASH.
= = = = = = = still thinking = = = = = = =
Which brings me back to the 911 Radio System CRASH of today. This system was not designed correctly and should be looked at from start to finish. PERHAPS FROM AN OUTSIDE COMPANY OR ELECTRONICS CONSULTING FIRM. We are not talking about a crappy $400 DELL computer system. This is a multi-million dollar system ! I’ve read a lot of the specs on the equipment they are using and the specs say that their equipment will not fail. So if their equipment won’t fail, it must be the T1 phone lines, the Motorola Radios, or poor design ! What else could it have been, DISPATCHER FLU ? I think not.
THOSE ARE MY VIEWS. PERHAPS WE SHOULD CALL A MEETING OF THE WESTMORELAND COUNTY COMMISSIONERS. I WONDER IF THEY EVEN KNOW WHAT IS GOING ON ??? DO THEY HAVE RADIOS ???
FINAL THOUGHT
I suggest that the Westmoreland County Commissioners send the current 911 system directors (one per shift) to Motorola school to learn the technicial operations of this system. They should be able to do anything a Motorola Tech can do with the exception of actually fixing a radio. Without that you are going to see more and more problems that mirror today's CRASH.
We can't depend on MOTOROLA or STALEY COMMUNICATIONS to give instructions to our emergency vehicles, like they did today.
DECODED,
K3SAM
