VIDEO: Communications for airport emergencies

As part of an emergency management exercise simulating an aircraft accident, emergency management personnel at the TF Green International Airport in Warwick, Rhode Island, took part in a demonstration to test the FirstNet network’s capabilities.

During the exercise, FirstNet Band 14 mobile broadband devices were used to help manage communications between response teams and the emergency communications centre.

“Communications unfortunately is one of the common failures in most drills and exercises,” said David Schnell, Emergency Management Preparedness Branch Chief with the Rhode Island Emergency Management Agency.

“So therefore, having broadband introduced into the realm of drills and exercises makes it easier for first responders to be able to view real data at real time and also assist with the actual response to the victims.”

The first video below is a short overview of the Rhode Island exercise.

In all major incidents or accidents, reliable and dependable communications are paramount in order to help reduce the ‘fog of war’ confusion and expedite the responses that are needed.

The second video (quite long, about 35 minutes) shows what happens during a real emergency. It is helmet-cam footage taken during the response to the crash of Asian Airlines flight 214 at San Francisco airport in July 2013. It illustrates perfectly the fluid and sometimes confusing nature of emergency situations. Please note that the video does not show injured or deceased passengers; it picks up from the point when all passengers had been removed from the scene.

Image courtesy Real World Police.