It is unsustainable to keep up with dispatch requirements using a pen and paper to manually complete forms when computer systems fail for thirty minutes or longer during a snow-storm, flash-flood, or an unforeseen disaster such as a cyber-attack.
Disaster Recovery is one of the most important factors of any Public Safety technology deployment. Evolving threats and heightened expectations require a proactive stance on being prepared to effectively communicate through potentially life-threatening situations if a computer aided dispatch system goes down unexpectedly.
Nashville Metro 911 is now using Mark43 as a backup solution for a real-time, cloud native Computer Aided Dispatch program to ensure systems are running even if their primary CAD becomes unavailable, even in a circumstance like the unfortunate 2021 Christmas Bombing incident.
Mark43 is a mobile, tactical CAD application that can be used by the Field Incident Response Support Team (FIRST) to conduct incidental dispatch duties from off-site environments. The addition of Mark43 to the tech stack ensures that a team of trained public safety communications professionals have a versatile CAD platform and can provide crucial communications and response support in any environment, equipped only with a laptop and internet connection.
Being prepared to respond to unfortunate events with a reliable CAD system shows an added level of commitment to the community.
Here are three things to consider before adopting a secondary CAD solution:
- Think of any natural and manmade risks to your network and systems. How would you operate if an incident caused you to lose connectivity to your CAD system?
- What is the cost associated with the lost time and billing when emergency personnel are forced to work with pen and paper or wait for network connectivity to resume?
- Alternate CAD is critical in the case of cyber events. Cyberattacks in Suffolk County, NY and Butler County, OH took a combined half-million dollars to recover from after factoring in the costs of new equipment and employee overtime.
Contact GovDirect to discuss your CAD strategy and other aspects of your technology disaster recovery plan.
