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JB MDL implements new emergency mass-notification system

  • Published
  • By Air Mobility Command Emergency Management
JOINT BASE MCGUIRE-DIX-LAKEHURST, N.J. --  Headquarters Air Mobility Command awarded a contract in September to Reliable Government Solutions to provide AtHoc Installation Warning System Alerts to Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst and seven other AMC installations.

This system procurement, in part, is in response to mitigating events such as the Fort Hood, Texas, shooting incident, but will be key to notifying installation personnel during all types of emergencies.

The new system was installed here at the end of December and was put into service in early January. The system sends out mass notification over a giant voice system, email and even cell phones.

"Lakehurst had no previous giant voice capabilities on the main part of the base," said Master Sgt. Melissa Elkins, 87th Air Base Wing Command Post plans and programs manager from Elma, Wash. "With the installation of the new system every part of the base is covered."

AtHoc is a network-centric emergency mass notification system which also provides an aspect of personnel accountability. Personnel accountability comprises a list of which personnel were notified, when they were notified and whether or not those personnel acknowledged the notification.

The system is capable of notifying personnel from a single, centralized, web-based instance within minutes of an emergency. Types of notifications range from force-protection condition changes, anti terror warnings or natural disaster alerts for approaching tornadoes, hurricanes or other emergency situations.

"The new system now sends out messages simultaneously instead of one side of the base receiving a message moments before the other," said Elkins. "Everything is joint now, no longer will servicemembers hear retreat or reveille playing at two different times."

The JB MDL Command Post is assigned as the lead agency to operate the system; though emergency managers also are key players in the process.

The AMC command center located at Scott Air Force Base, Ill., will also have the ability to make command-wide notifications. As the primary owners of the systems at all AMC bases, command posts will wrong word alerts upon direction of the wing commander or their representative. A forthcoming HQ AMC EMNS concept of operations will outline operational details and provide guidance on how installations are to use the system. Installation commanders will be the final approval authority for local implementation and use.

The client installation phase should be transparent to the user. Once complete, it is easy for an end user (alert recipient) to know when communication is in place from his or her desktop, as indicated by the small purple globe in the system tray indicating connectivity. The system tray is located at the bottom right corner of a computer screen. A gray globe with a red "X" appears in the system tray when there is no communication or a connectivity issue occurs.

End-user responsibilities are simple: update and maintain current contact information in the EMNS and respond to alerts in a timely manner by following the provided instructions. Users can update contact information by using the AtHoc IWSAlerts self service module: just right click on the purple globe and select "Access Self Service," then input and update contact information accordingly.

"Compared to the previous system, this new one is very easy to use," said Tech. Sgt. Ivan Phillips, 87th CP operations chief. "They incorporated the system so we could communicate simultaneously with personnel whether they were on the McGuire, Dix or Lakehurst part of the base. Before, we had to draft two to three different messages which ultimately wasted valuable time."

An alert will have a specific set of instructions to respond to. Users should read the entire alert and/or listen to the entire message then respond accordingly. An important note to remember is this system will notify many people in a short period of time and provide robust notification capabilities, but personnel should still remember wingman responsibilities to ensure a 100-percent accountability.

"Coordination between several base agencies was required for the new giant voice system to be installed and brought into operational capability," said Elkins. "Since its installation, the system has been 100-percent operational and all messages sent out by the command post have been successful."

The contract provides eight installations with a rapid means to notify the base populace using computer pop-ups, email, telephony (hard line and cellular) and text messaging. The seven other installations receiving AtHoc IWSAlert with this contract include Dover Air Force Base, Del.; Scott AFB, Ill.; Fairchild AFB, Wash.; Grand Forks AFB, N.D.; Little Rock AFB, Ark.; McConnell AFB, Kan., and Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash. The goal of this purchase is to align these installations with the other AMC bases and improve the notification in a more standard fashion.