An FCC Hurricane Katrina panel Tues. heard from Miss. and Fla. br...
An FCC Hurricane Katrina panel Tues. heard from Miss. and Fla. broadcasters, disability groups, amateur radio operators, the satellite industry and others in Jackson, Miss. (CD March 7 p8). Echoed by others present, a Miss. Assn. of Bcstrs. representative…
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urged credentialing of broadcasters as first responders in emergencies -- at least entitling stations to fuel and generator power. “If anything comes out of these hearings, it should be that the FCC and other federal agencies dedicate broadcasters as first responders,” said Dave Vincent, WLOX Biloxi-Gulfport- Pascagoula station mgr. Marie Antoon of Miss. Public Bcstg. asked the FCC to consider “hardening certain broadcast assets” in the Gulf Coast region, referring mainly to broadcast towers. “Fuel is important, but towers are our weakness,” she said. Antoon said the Miss. Dept. of Homeland Security is testing an addressable FM-radio system covering 95% of that state and 2 WiFi-based projects for 2-way voice, video and data. Fla. Assn. of Bcstrs. Pres. Pat Roberts said his state is “already in high gear” for hurricane season. Fla. is “redoing” hurricane-related media campaigns to reach urban poor and retirees in high-rise buildings on the coast, he said. The Katrina panel’s 3 working groups reported on progress to panel chair Nancy Victory. Each group said it has met at least twice since the panel’s Jan. inauguration (CD Jan 31 p1). Working group 1, on infrastructure resiliency, hopes to have recommendations for the full panel within 30 days, said Chair Marion Scott, vp-operations at CenturyTel. Steve Davis, senior vp-engineering at Clear Channel, is leading working group 2, on recovery coordination. His group is zeroing in on emergency responder credentialing, access to broadcasting and telecom facilities and coordinating emergency information between state and local officials. Working group 2’s next conference call is set for March 28, Davis said. Working group 3, on emergency communications, may report early on national emergency information to the full panel, said Chair Steve Delahousey, vp-operations American Medical Response. “There may be a need to make some interim recommendations prior to the June 15 deadline,” Delahousey said. Delahousey said his group wants to hold roundtable discussions with “emergency communicators” in southern Miss., La. and Ala. in the near future to hammer out a few best practices. The Katrina panel’s next full meeting will be in April, Victory said.