Cross-Training for First Responders
The communications difficulties experienced in disasters have been well-documented. The classic example in the popular mind is the inability of New York City fire and police departments to communicate with each other on Sept. 11, 2001. ... Bennett wants professional and volunteer first responders to get on the same page on these issues and more sophisticated ones as well. The National Incident Management System is making some strides in this direction, he says, but it will take some years before its effects are felt extensively.Cross-Training for First Respondersexplains the kind of training necessary to overcome the emergency response communications gap.—In theNatural Hazards Observer, September 2011