When Field Communications Are Critical

By Ken Perkins, Reseller Marketing Manager, Wilson Electronics

Dan Busse is a communications support volunteer with the fire department in Eureka Mo., near St. Louis. The department operates a Mobile Command Center, a specialized vehicle outfitted with computers and communications equipment that can drive to the scene of an incident and function as a communication and command post for first responders.

“Many of the incidents the MCC responds to are search and rescue operations or fires,” Busse said. “We rely on cellular communications in the field for both voice and data.”

That’s why ensuring reliable cellular signal for the MCC is a top priority for Busse. “More and more it’s just assumed that even out in the field, we’re going to have Internet access,” he said. “It’s increasingly important for situations like HazMat response and identification.

“The latest thing is the ability to push out compressed video from an incident scene. For example, if we were called to a train derailment, we could be asked to push video out from the scene to the railroad’s war room so they could see what’s happening as the situation develops.”

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