November will mark my second anniversary as FCC Chairman. On this occasion, our open meeting agenda reflects the very same priorities I spoke about on my first day. From the outset I’ve spoken about the Commission’s responsibility to uphold the core values that have historically defined our communications networks, what I call the Network Compact. Two of those core values are access and public safety, and each will be featured at our upcoming meeting.
If you’re looking for evidence of communications technology’s power to save lives, look no further than the events of July 1, 2013 in East Windsor, Connecticut. A tornado swept through town, tearing apart an inflatable indoor soccer dome and blowing parts onto the nearby highway. Literally two minutes before the tornado hit, the soccer dome was filled with 29 children and five camp counselors. With moments to spare, they were evacuated to an adjoining building where they sought shelter. The reason they knew to seek cover was that the manager of the summer camp received an alert from the National Weather Service on her phone saying a tornado was headed her way, and she responded immediately.
The reason she received that warning was because the FCC and FEMA, working with the wireless industry, established the Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEA) system to deliver critical information to Americans on their wireless phones. Typical messages include severe weather information and Amber Alerts. Now that stakeholders have a few years’ experience with the service, we can make it even better.
