The state Department of Environmental Conservation’s plan to move its Adirondack emergency dispatchers from the Lake Placid region to Albany is creating quite a stir.
Critics contend the move will make the public less safe. The argument is that dispatchers in Albany will be less familiar with the Adirondack—and its bewildering nomenclature—and this could slow the response time of search-and-rescue crews.
State Senator Betty Little, who represents the North Country, is among those questioning the change. “Obviously, the state is looking at ways to be more efficient all the time,” she told the Adirondack Daily Enterprise, “but in the Adirondacks, which is a remote, vast region, you have to ask, Is this the safest way to do things?”
DEC spokeswoman Lori Severino said the dispatchers will learn about Adirondack trails and terrain and will have software programs to assist them.
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Click here to read the full story by Mike Lynch in the Enterprise.
“DEC spokeswoman Lori Severino said the dispatchers will learn about Adirondack trails and terrain and will have software programs to assist them.”
Good luck! I guess they gotta do it. I hope the system isn’t dependent on good cell coverage?
@Paul 1/26/11 17:00
No Paul, it’s based on cable TV internet. If the network goes down the connection to dispatchers also goes down until the connection is brought back on-line. Most of the data path is reliant on wires and equipment that DEC has no control over, and no ability to fix for themselves when it goes down. DEC will have to wait until Time-Warner repairs the lines/equipment – could be minutes, could be hours, could be days.
Oh dear, I hope they are not using web based software to learn the trails and terrain!
Chris how does the Ray Brook thing work now? It might be like cans and string?
This might help boost GPS sales!