Toward interoperable first response

For many years, responders to incidents that threaten US public safety have been unable to communicate efficiently using radio - a capability critical to command and control and information sharing in a first response. The attacks on September 11, 2001 made it tragically clear that the US must make interoperable wireless communications among first responders and other public-safety organizations a high priority. In radio communications, interoperability is the complex problem of unifying legacy systems spread across frequency bands and myriad geographic locations, each of which uses unique operating procedures. Many public-safety organizations have begun to coordinate with each other to ensure compatibility in hardware purchases, the use of radio-frequency spectrums, and operational planning. Standards are also in place to decrease the number of unique, proprietary solutions.