FCC Urged to Look at IP Technology for Disaster Relief

Dozens of comments were filed this week in response to a report by an independent panel that reviewed the impact of Hurricane Katrina on communications networks. Commenters endorsed some of the recommendations, such as developing ways to quickly gain credentials for communications workers and streamlining the emergency outage reporting process. Many urged the FCC to act quickly on a proceeding to reconfigure the 700 MHz band to facilitate interoperability among first responders.

Cisco said the report should have given more emphasis to “the flexibility and resiliency of IP-based technology and networks” because they “demonstrate better survivability” in emergencies: “When existing networks are rendered unusable, IP networks can more readily be built to provide critical replacement service,” Cisco said.

Manufacturer M/A-Com said there should be “mutual aid channels” consistently developed across all bands and they should be connected “to Internet Protocol-capable Public Safety Answering Points or, at a State’s discretion, to IP gateways so that they can be connected to an IP-based interoperability network.” “When operational, these mutual aid channels are an important resource that can enable public safety commanders to speak in one talk group,” M/A-COM said: “Thus, instead of creating a ‘wireless Tower of Babel,’ with 100 police officers attempting to speak with 100 firefighters over 100 channels through 100 new radios, mutual aid channels provide a more effective near-term interoperability solution.”

Just using traditional voice mail technology can very quickly provide communication for those displaced by disasters, said pulver.com and Evslin Consulting, in joint comments. For example, voice mail services can be placed on subscribers’ existing telephone numbers so messages can be left by incoming callers. “The capability to provide such voice mail services already resides in the switches and associated data bases maintained by most PSTN voice carriers,” pulver and Evslin said. The 2 companies have a petition pending at the FCC asking the agency to require that providers obligated to offer E-911 make alternative service such as voice mail available to consumers in emergencies.

Intrado said policymakers should focus on next- generation E-911, which will be more IP based. “We believe any rulemaking on the subject of back-up 911 call center operators should be integrated into the system wide enhancement, commonly referred to as Next Generation 911… rather than treating it as a stand alone patch on the legacy 911 system,” said Intrado, which provides E-911 network services to carriers.

Verizon endorsed the report’s recommendation that the Network Reliability & Interoperability Council (NRIC) look at “updates to best practices to account for new network technologies and applications.” Verizon said it supported other recommendations as well, including “the categorization of telecommunications repair workers as emergency responders… in order to provide them with security and transport to areas affected by a disaster.” It also urged the Commission to “improve outage monitoring by establishing a single repository or point of contact for communications outage information in the wake of a disaster.”

CTIA said the outage reporting process should be streamlined so it won’t “result in an onerous outage reporting burden that diverts resources from damage assessments and recovery efforts.” CTIA also urged the agency to make sure “wireless facilities receive priority for both electric power and landline service restoration.” The Alliance for Telecom Industry Solutions said the FCC should be the single contact for collecting disaster-related communications outage data.

The FCC “should direct industry consensus groups to establish readiness checklists and encourage providers to adopt them,” said AT&T. Bechtel Federal Telecom said the report’s recommendations show “the need for increased and more focused management of the security and reliability of communications infrastructure.” To make that happen, the FCC should “ensure that more and better data about our nation’s communications networks is available by encouraging the development of a national database,” Bechtel said.

Lucent “strongly” encouraged the FCC to resolve a pending proceeding to reconfigure the data portion of the 700 MHz band, which it said would improve interoperability among first responders and encourage development of regional 700 MHz systems. The American Petroleum Institute said adequate spectrum is imperative “for the oil and natural gas industry to maintain safe operations in emergency situations” and urged action in several other proceedings involving the 900 MHz, 2.5 GHz and 3.65 GHz bands.

Qwest questioned whether any new action was needed as a result of the report: “Codified federal rules are not desirable in the context of events which, by their very nature, lack specific detail far in advance, are fluid in their actual circumstances and are potentially catastrophic.” Qwest said the FCC already “plays a leadership role” in disaster planning in most areas and many of the report’s recommendations are being addressed by industry groups such as NRIC.

St. Tammany Parish, Covington, La., took issue with several of the report’s findings, such as one criticizing local govts. for not having plans for call forwarding or re- routing: “In the experience of St. Tammany Parish… rerouting was of no use due to catastrophic damage to the telecommunications infrastructure.” The parish also questioned the report’s finding that satellite infrastructure was generally unaffected by the storm: “Satellite telephone service was insufficient and inconsistent, despite adequate training and correct operation of the devices.”

USA Mobility said Katrina showed the advantages of paging for emergency communications, including its use of satellite for backhaul and of antennas located much further off the ground sending a stronger signal than wireless carrier towers: “Katrina… exposed the fundamental differences between paging technology and other wireless technologies -- differences that caused paging networks to remain operational longer and enabled them to be restored more quickly than voice networks.”

Media Groups Seek Hands-Off Approach

Broadcasters and cable operators want the FCC to take a hands-off approach, encouraging self-regulation to make sure the industries are ready for emergencies. But NAB and NCTA asked the Commission to work with other agencies to ensure their workers get priority access to disaster areas. Cable also wants to get automatic waivers and quick action on industry special temporary authority requests during crises.

Municipal officials should be told broadband and VoIP can help them quickly disseminate information, said NCTA. Local officials “need greater awareness that the advanced, interconnected fiber backbone and concentric rings… provide for redundant paths and nearly instantaneous rerouting of services,” the group said: “We also believe the FCC has an important role in facilitating recovery coordination” among a wide range of agencies.

Broadcaster emergency alerts should include more information from the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration’s Weather Radio (NWR), said CEA. It said the radio network originates more than 96% of all emergency alert system (EAS) notifications. “EAS has evolved into a voluntary system in which broadcasters exercise discretion over which alerts to transmit,” a CEA filing stated: “Its transformation from dissemination of weather information to its origination of carriage of alerts on all hazards and emergencies would justify formalizing its role in the national EAS hierarchy as the primary source of alerts.”