Enhanced 911 Newsletter February March 2007
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Volume 2, Issue 2 February / March 2007 Window Rock, Arizona 86515 When should you use 9-1-1? • In an emergency situation only when immediate when and how to call for help when us- assistance is needed from police, fire or medical emergency personnel. ing emergency 9-1-1. The students were joined by two • A call to 9-1-1 should always be a call for HELP!! special guests. The first guest was Presi- • It is free to call 9-1-1 from a payphone. dent, Dr. Joe Shirley, Jr. who told the students that calling 9-1-1 on the telephone is to save a life in danger and they should not use it for prank calls. They watched the President read aloud the Proclamation for Red E. Fox to be adopted as the Students from Hunters Point and Teecnospos L to R: Red E. Fox, Lt. Francine Bradley , Buckle Bear, Boarding School waiting to see Red E. Fox and Ashkii Happy, Gruff the Crime-fighting Dog, Darren the official 9-1-1 mascot for learn about Emergency 911 while other schools D.A.R.E. Lion with Navajo Nation President, Dr. Joe Navajo Nation and wit- were shut down due to the snowy weather. Shirley Jr. at Navajo Nation 9-1-1 for Kids Day. nessed him signing it. He On January 31, 2007 at the Navajo Nation told the students that Red Museum in Window Rock, the Navajo Nation E. Fox will be your friend welcome it’s newest Public Safety mascot, Red. and your teacher on how to E. Fox. Students from TeecNosPos Community use 9-1-1 when there is an Miss Navajo, Jocelyn Billy entertains the children & attendees emergency. School, Hunters Point Boarding School and local Navajo song to help children remember 9-1- Finally, Red E. Fox made his official areas were part of the Navajo Nation 9-1-1 for 1 using their five senses: hear, smell, feel, entrance on stage. The audience ap- Kids Day event. The children received coloring taste and see. plauded his entrance and the students books, bags, pencils, balloons, etc. Lieutenant Students, parents and attendees also yelled in unison “Red E, Red E. Red E.” Francine Bradley, Navajo Department of Law watched a 15 minute video program on how The second guest was Miss Navajo, Enforcement was the Mistress of Ceremony. She to use the telephone when calling 9-1-1. Jocelyn Billy. She talked to the students talked directly to the students on when to use 9-1- Red E. Fox will be visiting schools on the on the importance of learning how to call 1. The students responded to all her questions on Navajo Nation to educate students on the for emergency help. Then she sang a proper use of 9-1-1. On February 1, 2007, the Tohajiilee and the overall schedule. Pilot Project kick-off meeting took place Clint Wedel, SDR presented the require- in Albuquerque, New Mexico. There ments and methodology for the Tohajiilee were representatives from the Navajo Pilot Project. The Navajo Nation is re- Nation Enhanced 9-1-1 Task Force, To- quired to appoint an Addressing/GIS Map- Students waiting to learn about 9-1-1 at Navajo Nation hajiilee Chapter officials, Navajo Hous- ping Coordinator to oversee the rural ad- Museum. Snow did not keep the students away from en- ing Authority, Bernalillo County, City of dressing initiative. Additional project plan- joying the 9-1-1 for Kids Day. Albuquerque, State of New Mexico 9-1- ning meetings will be scheduled for Ad- 1 Office, Ron Whinery Consultants, and dressing and GIS Mapping to establish a INSIDE THIS ISSUE: Spatial Data Research (SDR). The meet- comprehensive addressing plan. Page ing was intended to facilitiate the face- The group agreed to use the Bernalillo Sacred Winds Communications 2 to-face meeting of some of the key pilot County Rural Addressing Standards for the project members. They reviewed and pilot project. The Tohajiilee Chapter se- Rural Addressing Prioritization 3 discuss various agreements, the scope of lected a local committee known as 9-1-1 Planning Committee 3 work, the roles and responsibilities of “Tohajiilee Community Action Team” to individuals, teams, and organizations, serve as the rural (Continued on Page 4) 9-1-1 Kids Program 4 NAVAJO NATION 9-1-1 P AGE 2 9-1-1 Community Day in Tohajiilee, NM Tohajiilee 9-1-1 Community Aware- The task force members have extended ness Day is scheduled for March 10, 2007 an invitation to the following organizations from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at the De- to participate: Public Safety, Health, Toha- sidero Center. The E9-1-1 Task Force jiilee Community Action Team (TCAT), members and Tohajiilee Chapter staff are Department of Early Childhood, Head Start, working closely on coordinating activities Tohajiilee Indian Health Service, Crown- for the Awareness Day. point Police Department, Bernalillo County The E9-1-1 Task Force will dissemi- Communication Department and SDR to nate information to the community mem- provide information on their programs. 9-1-1 for Kids attendees bers on 9-1-1, Rural Addressing and the The 9-1-1 Public Education is designed 9-1-1 for Kids Program. The 9-1-1 Public to provide the community members, chapter Education program is designed to increase officials and council delegates the opportu- the awareness and educate the Dine’ on nity to find out how these programs are inte- the proper use of dialing the 9-1-1 emer- grate in helping the communities. Lunch gency number to save lives and property. will be served to the public. There are three basic plan messages: when to call 9-1-1, how to call 9-1-1 and what to say in the case of a police, fire, and medical or poison emergency. LeAnn Goy, GIS Analyst, NDOT erations this past December 2006. This has allowed the Company to begin pro- viding Qwest customers to be con- verted to Sacred Wind Communica- tions. According to the Sacred Wind Presi- E9-1-1 Task Force Members posed with dent, very little change in phone service Attendees eating pizza lunch with two Ashkii Happy & Public Safety Mascots will be experienced. Qwest will con- camera shy students tinue to carry current telephone traffic from Sacred Wind local copper wire Sacred Wind Communications systems to its switches in Gallup, Ft. Wingate, Thoreau, Aztec, Farmington, and the Federal Communications Commis- Kirtland, Bloomfield, and Albuquerque sion (FCC), they began operations. west to the outside world. Sacred Sacred Wind Communications (hereafter Wind will be building a state-of-the-art Sacred Wind) is a privately-owned; New wireless telecom network and is ex- Mexico based company, dedicated to im- pected to have the foundation com- prove telecommunications service to rural pleted by September 2007, at which areas within New Mexico. They have pur- time more advanced services will be chased from Qwest Corporation its local available to their customers. telephone facilities serving portions of Na- Phone rates for services provided by vajo lands and lands in the northwest, Four Sacred Winds will not be different from Corners, and Tohajiilee (formerly Canon- Qwest rates until Sacred Winds com- Sacred Wind Communications Team cito) areas of the state. pletes its network development. The Focused mainly on introducing basic tele- current and future rates are approved by Sacred Wind Communications pro- phone services to the many thousands of un- the NM Public Regulation Commis- vided an interesting presentation at the served homes on the Navajo Nation, Sacred sion. But once Sacred Wind’s new E9-1-1 Quarterly Task Force Meeting on Wind also has the intent and mission of pro- system is in place, it will follow the January 30, 2007. Mr. Gil Arviso, Presi- viding the most advanced services; includ- established process for any rate dent of the Company and a resident of St. ing, high speed Internet services, to Navajos changes. However, Sacred Wind will Michaels Chapter community shared in- and non-Navajo residents, governmental keep in mind the Navajo Nation cus- formation on his unique company that entities, and businesses in their territory. tomers by promoting the FCC’s Tele- was recently established in September, They have received all required New Mex- phone Assistance Program and the Na- 2005. After a lengthy process of filing ico and FCC authorizations to acquire tive-American oriented Tribal Lifeline their application with the New Mexico Qwest Corporation’s network located in the program which guarantees eligible Public Regulation Commission (NMPRC) areas described above and have begun op- (continued on page 4) V OLUME 2, I SSUE 2 P AGE 3 9-1-1 Planning Committee In order to qualify for state 9-1-1 fund- vices; Henry Wallace, Department Manager, The Navajo Nation is one step closer in ing, a public or private safety agency or Department of Emergency Medical Services accessing state E9-1-1 funds from Arizona any group of agencies shall establish a 9-1- and Pearl Lee, Program Manager, Navajo Na- and New Mexico and bringing those funds 1 Planning Committee to develop 9-1-1 tion Communications & Utilities Department. back to the Navajo Nation to implement an emergency telephone service plans for the The committee shall, upon formation, submit a effective 9-1-1 system on the Navajo Nation. specific geographic area for which the service plan as outlined in Arizona Administra- agencies shall be providing service. tive Code R2-1-403, Submission of a Service The Navajo Nation E9-1-1 Task Force Plan. Once the plan is approved by State of has identified the following members: Arizona, the State of New Mexico has commit- Ervin Keeswood, Chairperson, Govern- ted that they will accept the same plan.