It’s hurricane season again so time to figure out how communications networks can be beefed up to ensure that they survive these storms. Projectsafety.org recently demonstrated how a network can survive a hurricane. Larry Karisny sent me the following press release regarding a demo they did at a recent Hurricane Preparedness Expo:

John’s Pass Hurricane Preparedness Expo demonstrated high tech and low tech hurricane preparedness

A Hurricane Preparedness Expo at a waterway created by a Hurricane called John’s Pass in Madeira Beach demonstrated the only two communication systems that survived Hurricane Katrina. The Sponsor of the Expo, ProjectSafety, demonstrated a broadband wireless network put up by CitiWiFi in a half hour just before a big squall hit the John’s Pass area. Neil Lauritsen, Emergency Coordinator for Auxiliary Communications Services (ACR) and Amateur Radio Emergency Services (ARES) brought in a ham radio system driving it in with a van he calls “porcupine” because of all the antennas on it. Lowe’s came in with gas and propane generators powering the Expo while keeping everyone cool with outside air conditions.

With all of John’s Pass connected with alternate power, wireless broadband and a ham radio being able to connect to our troops in Iraq, the Hurricane Preparedness Expo demonstrated real world of power and communications survivability after the devastation of an event like a hurricane. “There are two things you can be pretty much be assured of after a hurricane: there is no power and there is no wireless communications.” said Karisny. “Our intent in the Hurricane Preparedness Expo was to give a real word look at what to expect after a hurricane and demonstrate what power and communications systems survived past catastrophes and which ones didn’t.”

While ARES connected other Ham Radio operators all over the world with the ability of connecting to the Space Station, ProjectSafety connected to a broadband wireless connection showing streaming videos of communication systems that did and did not survive Hurricane Katrina. The communication networks and cell phone networks in the greater New Orleans region failed. The networks that survived were the low power Ham Radio and WiFi Municipal wireless networks. ProjectSafety offered video statements from city officials all over our nation making very clear what communications networks survived their particular catastrophic events.

There are two very simple reasons why cell and emergency wireless communications systems do not survive hurricanes. Wireless communication towers are blown down or twisted and the large power sources required that run these communications systems are normally underneath the tower and they get flooded. No power, no communication antenna, no wireless network.

City of Madeira Beach District 1 Commissioner Terry where John’s Pass Village is located said ” these municipal wireless networks are not only important for our first responders, they are a critical requirement for people coordinating supply logistics, insurance adjusters putting in claims and just your average citizen coming back. The longer it takes to get these operations in place the longer it will take us to rebuild. We need to of course to prepare before a hurricane but we also need to think about what we need to do after a hurricane. We can’t rebuild unless we have a way to communicate. “

The Federal Government recently had a wireless 700 MHz spectrum bid for a national wireless public safety frequency. The one bid for the spectrum auction was well below the required bid requirement. Even if the spectrum was awarded, it would take over five years to build the national wireless public safety network. Our nation is now left with few alternatives

ProjectSafety has had a solution to the emergency communications network problem defined in a white paper published since late 2002. The business and technology model called Community Network Integration (CNI) offers public safety and transportation primary access to a low power dedicated short range network while also serving the general public. This design offers multiple government agencies and the general public the ability to share the cost of a single wireless network. These public/private shared models were stressed by Emergency Communication officials in Tallahassee as being the only way to get the technology needed or first responders under the state’s current budgetary requirements.

”With hurricane season coming and with most communities not having survivable communications systems in place, we need to start to listen to the facts of past catastrophes and start building survivable and interoperable communication systems,” said Karisny. Local examples of these municipal wireless networks are like the ones in the City of Treasure Island. What you see being done by companies like CitiWiFi in Treasure Island is the first step in offering basic survivable and interoperable communication services to municipals. ProjectSafety can use these same core services while adding licensed public safety primary 4.9 GHz and transportation 5.9 GHz spectrum while future proofing the wireless networks with hundreds of applications serving both the public and private sector markets. Because CitiWiFi builds their own radios, they give ProjectSafety the ability of adding testing and deploying new technologies as needed. “

ProjectSafety wasn’t just telling a story at the Expo, they are pursuing grant funding for the Pinellas County beach cities though Progress Energy, Homeland Security, the Department of Transportation and the Department of Justice to test and deploy new power and communication technologies that could survive a hurricane. As a not-for-profit, the organization ProjectSafety is requesting that even your average day citizen__ contribute to this important life saving communication network.

“As a citizen you can also participate in ProjectSafety’s Community Integration model. In fact your contribution may be the only way you or a public safety official would be able to communication after a hurricane. The facts are in, and we need to find the funding and the leadership to start building these life saving alternate power sources and wireless communication systems in our communities. The storms we had just before and after the Hurricane Preparedness Expo at John’s Pass was just reminders of what could be coming”.

ProjectSafety.org [1]

Larry Karisny