[SatNews] As the last weekend of August approached, Hurricane Irene came barreling up the East Coast of the United States.
Forecasters warned of the potential for significant damage to infrastructure, and all levels of government were urging citizens to prepare and heed instructions to evacuate in necessary. GVF has been working diligently to put together a Disaster Preparedness Registry, intended to act as a singular resource for any and all entities during a disaster. The GVF decided to mount a significant effort, led by David Hartshorn and Steve Birnbaum, to demonstrate to emergency managers the importance of the benefits of having our industry cooperate and make available resources that may already exist throughout the affected areas. The results were a resounding success!
On very short notice, GVF member companies Cobham, Globecomm, Hughes, iDirect, Intelsat, SES, Spacenet, Stratos Global, Viasat and Wildblue all quickly stepped forward and provided detailed information about available resources that could be deployed in support of preparedness or response efforts. The equipment included satellite phones, VSAT terminals, hub equipment and bandwidth that were offered under both commercial and in-kind terms. GVF gathered the necessary information from the members, refined and formatted it and sent it to FEMA HQ within a matter of hours. FEMA’s Private Sector group distributed it to senior communications staff, as well as to the regional coordinators of the four affected FEMA areas. The FCC also disseminated it to their contacts dealing with public safety in the field. The NJ EOC and the U.S. military’s NORTHCOM also received copies. The provided information, along with the specific location of the equipment and personnel received very positive feedback from FEMA.
These preparedness efforts were deemed a great opportunity to refine the process for the next true disaster. GVF received many words of gratitude for the efforts and offers of it members. The GVF calls upon any members who wish to make any form of contribution to the post-incident analysis, or to indicate their desire to participate in the GVF Disaster Preparedness Registry to contact Steve Birnbaum at [email protected].
