By Stephen Smoot
Plans to incorporate the most advanced emergency communication technology into Pendleton 911 took another step forward last week. California-based NGA announced that it will soon install its systems into Pendleton, Grant, Mason, and Raleigh counties. This will help each to join local governments that have acquired next generation capabilities as the federal government has encouraged in recent years.
Last year, the Federal Communications Commission head Geoffrey Starks touted Next Generation 911 capabilities. After installation, as Starks stated, the new system “makes location information available to public safety answering points (PSAPs) more quickly.” He added that capabilities will “ultimately . . . support the transmission of text, photos, videos, and data – between the caller, the PSAP, and the first responder team.”
He called those characteristics “valuable improvements” and stated that “every American should benefit from them.”
A release from NGA added to the features already stated “integrated Artificial Intelligence, multi-language translation, and transcription.”
Mike Alt, training officer for Pendleton County Emergency Rescue, noted in a recent meeting that ambulance crews had recently encountered patients with no knowledge of the English language. Other counties in the region encounter this more and more often among Pilgrim’s workers from abroad.
Next Generation 911 starts with replacing the copper wiring currently serving Pendleton 911 with fiber optic primary and secondary trunk lines and a Starlink antenna. Rick Gillespie, Pendleton County Emergency Services coordinator, shared that one, perhaps two, major carriers will provide service to Pendleton 911 with Starlink as the final failsafe.
NGA also shared that counties can utilize the NEXisConnect platform. NGA quoted Ted Sparks, duirector of Logan County 911, as saying that the platform “displays . . . location before answering a 911 call.” He added that “NGA’s active-active, multi-region NGA ESInet eliminates single points of failure in the legacy 911 network.”
Locally Peggy Alt, Grant County 911 director, shared that “NGA has been a great partner throughout this process, particularly in supporting us with key components such as preparing our GIS for the new platform.” She explained to WHSV last week that “when anybody dials 911, it’s going to be able to come to the 911 center five different ways. That’s huge redundancy we don’t have now.”
She added that NGA will also provide training on how to use the new system and its expanded capabilities.
In December of 2024 the Pendleton County Commission heard that the first year of NGA service, including connection, would cost a little more than $112,000. Year two through five will total approximately $160,000. At the time, Gillespie saw that cost as a significant improvement over initial estimates of about $300,000 that would be required “all at once.”
