Part I of II - Crisis in Plain Site: Robb Elementary Shooting Reveals that In-Building Public Safety Radio Coverage was "Mostly Ineffective"
"Upon entering the building, the officers tried but were unable to communicate on their radios."
Law enforcement personnel work at the scene of a mass shooting in Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, May 25, 2022. (Nuri Vallbona/Reuters)
By John Foley, SBC Managing Director
Posted on July 28, 2022
We of the Safer Buildings Coalition mourn with the Uvalde community the tragic loss of life resulting from the assault on Robb Elementary School on May 25th. While it is the role of many to find every solution that could make our schools safer, it is the role of the SBC to examine whether public safety communications may have been a factor in such an incident, and how we might work to improve such problems wherever possible.
The Interim report of the Investigative Committee on the Robb Elementary Shooting of the Texas House of Representatives found that Robb Elementary “did not adequately prepare for the risk of an armed intruder on campus.” “Upon entering the building, the officers tried but were unable to communicate on their radios.”
In today’s world, it’s simply unacceptable to have people inside buildings unable to communicate with each other during an emergency.
In Part I of a two-part series, Safer Buildings Coalition examines a crucial element of this tragedy: Poor in-building public safety coverage.
In Part II, next month, the Safer Buildings Coalition will examine:
How common is the problem? Actual school in-building testing data
Solutions
Success Stories
Grants and Funding
What other verticals need to be prioritized? (i.e. Higher Ed, Malls, Healthcare, more...)
From the Chief’s Corner: Safer Buildings Expands to Canada
SBC Celebrates Milestone Hosting First Ever International In-Building Public Safety Communications Seminar
By Chief Alan Perdue (Ret.), CFO, FM, Executive Director – Safer Buildings Coalition
Posted on July 28, 2022
SBC celebrates milestone hosting its first ever international In-Building Public Safety Communications Seminar in Toronto, Canada. In doing so, SBC became a North American Coalition, taking the next step to being a global influence that will make the world safer by taking on the threat posed by wireless dead zones.
Meet the Candidates for Safer Buildings Coalition Board of Directors
Posted on July 28, 2022
The 2022 election for the Safer Buildings Coalition Board of Directors is here! As always, we strongly encourage our members to vote in this election -- Electronic polling is open July 15th - Aug 15th. Learn more about the candidates and how members vote by clicking the link below.
Submit Your Entry for the Safe Inside Product and Project of the Year Awards Program
Posted on July 28, 2022
It’s that time again! Safer Buildings Coalition wishes to recognize outstanding member products and projects through a new juried evaluation. SBC's Safe Inside Product of the Year award recognizes new products in the in-building public safety communications market. While the Safe Inside Project of the Year award recognizes outstanding projects in the in-building public safety communications market. Click below to learn more about submitting your entry.
Safer Buildings Coalition has assembled a strong team over the past decade. And when a team member transitions, we meet the occasion with a mix of overwhelming gratitude, and a touch of sadness to see them move on. We’d like to first celebrate the retirement of our ever faithful and reliable Operations Manager, Nancy Hoppe, and to briefly introduce some of our new team members.
The Safer Buildings Coalition Codes & Standards Work Group met July 1, 2022 to provide input on code issues as well as move forward other projects. This includes setting up a subcommittee for NFPA 1225 TIA response and recommendations.
The Safer Buildings Coalition Government Work Group met on July 15 to discuss several important topics including the 2022 Florida legislative session, the Federal FirstNet Reauthorization Bill, and New Jersey fire codes.
Meet the Newest Safer Buildings Coalition Members - July 2022
Posted on July 28, 2022
The Safer Buildings Coalition continues to grow. It’s our pleasure to introduce you to some of the newest additions to our member base: Connected Technologies, Health Signals and Invision Communications, Inc. Welcome to SBC!
The following sponsored content is provided by our members. Have some content to share? Contact Us.
iBwave Launches New Public Safety Survey Solution with Epiq Solutions' PRiSM Scanner
From iBwave
On July 13, 2022 iBwave was very excited to announce the arrival of our new survey solution for public safety that includes the Epiq Solutions' PRiSM scanner to survey P25 networks.
Offering the public safety industry a simple, lightweight and affordable scanner to survey public safety networks is something both us at iBwave and Epiq Solutions are very excited to launch.
NYC Was Ahead Of Its Time In Public Safety Communications
From ADRF
The public safety communications market has historically been a quiet giant in the wireless industry. In-building connectivity for first responders has always been important, but now mobile carriers are also bringing public safety much closer to their core consumer-facing brand. Look no further than AT&T's creation of its nationwide public safety network FirstNet, followed closely by Verizon’s first responder brand, Frontline, which launched in March 2021. There are also more stringent, clearly-defined regulations for ensuring public safety connectivity like the UL2524, Second Edition, which is now part of the latest National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) and International Fire Codes (IFC) codes.
Want to Know Who Can Perform In-Building Public Safety Work?
The purpose of the Safer Buildings Coalition Member Showcase is to provide visibility to the organizations who have demonstrated this commitment through Safer Buildings Coalition participation in this specialized community of practice.
.jpg?upscale=true&width=418&upscale=true&name=Private-Networks-Epiq-scanner-700-Pardot%20(1).jpg)
