Three incidents on Metro in the last 60 days led to the discovery that the transit agency was using a bad number to reach D.C. emergency dispatchers.
On the evening of the Washington Nationals’ World Series victory parade, Dan Stessel of Metro advised that a manager in Metro’s Rail Operations Control Center called DC 911 to report a fire at the Chinatown station, but was placed on hold which created a delay in dispatching Fire and EMS. During this period, Metro managers were also placed on hold when a rider was trapped in an elevator and again when another passenger was ill.
Metro looked at these delays and raised its concerns with the Office of Unified Communications or OUC, which oversees D.C. 911. The OUC director Karima Holmes testified at a City Council inquiry that Metro was using a number that routed calls to a low-priority queue where they’re placed on hold if the dispatch center is busy.
This is unacceptable! In light of the discovery, the OUC has subsequently provided Metro’s operations center with the same seven-digit emergency number used by neighboring 911 centers in MD and VA. Metro has verified that it now has the correct number to reach emergency responders in DC and every other jurisdiction it serves.
Comment: This is the Nation’s Capital, and the Office of Unified Communications (OUC) is the hub of emergency services for the citizens and visitors of the District of Columbia. Is this the best we can do, where are the checks and balances? There should be someone at the OUC charged with creating and maintaining a revolving schedule of information and service updates that gets distributed on a regular basis to all neighboring emergency services agencies (Police-Fire-EMS) to also include the areas Water and Power companies.
Filed under: Commentary
September 27, 2020 • 19:22 Comments Off on “Executive Orders”
“Executive Orders”
Commentary by: U.S. Law Shield | newsletters@uslawshield.com
Where Did Our Freedoms Go?
new definitions for common words and phrases that we all thought we had a pretty good grasp on. During the COVID-19 period, we have all come to know phrases like “non-essential” and “essential” businesses. How about “social distancing” or those all too familiar “masks” of the PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) variety? We can’t forget “public gatherings,” which can be prohibited, limited in size, or restricted in new ways. Don’t even mention our Gun Rights or the 2nd Amendment. Some very specific terms have been amplified this year, or shall we say turned sideways, like the measurement of 6 feet, now the prescribed “safe distance” between us. Many of our freedoms seem to have disappeared right before our eyes. No explanation needed. No permission needed. No votes cast. How could this possibly happen without more involvement from the people of our country? Well I’ll tell ya, it’s all linked to the following two words… Executive Orders.
With just a signature these days, you can Blink and your rights are gone. If someone drafted a dictionary for the year 2020, it would undoubtedly include brand
Filed under: Commentary