New technology to aid emergency communication during crises or in remote areas

CLINTON—In a major upgrade to local disaster response capabilities, the Anderson County Emergency Management Agency (ACEMA) is in the process of a communications upgrade across its emergency management fleet. By pairing Starlink satellite terminals and multi-carrier LTE data routing with state-of-the-art tri-band mobile radios, the county has established a new level of voice and data resilience for first responders for the most remote areas or in times of devastation when other communications fail.

The hybrid data system is engineered to automatically sense network health and seamlessly shift traffic. If a severe storm, flash flood, or technical outage cripples local cellular towers, the vehicle’s onboard router instantly transfers critical data streams to the Starlink satellite network without interrupting active operations.

Complementing this resilient data pipeline is the deployment of advanced tri-band mobile radios. These radios allow emergency managers to communicate seamlessly across VHF, UHF, and 700/800 MHz frequencies—including the Tennessee Advanced Communications Network (TACN)—from a single control head. This eliminates historical communication barriers between local, state, and federal agencies during complex, multi-jurisdictional operations.

“Step by step, we’re improving our communications posture in Anderson County. We couldn’t do it without the support of our Board of County Commissioners,” Mayor Terry Frank said.

“During a large-scale emergency, accurate, real-time communication dictates how efficiently we can deploy resources and protect lives. By combining satellite-backed data redundancy with tri-band radio flexibility, our mobile command assets maintain a secure, high-speed lifeline back to the Emergency Operations Center (EOC) and uninterrupted voice links with our mutual aid partners, no matter the conditions on the ground,” said EMA Director Joe Mead.

The newly integrated communications architecture delivers several critical capabilities to the field:

  • Seamless Tri-Band Interoperability: Field units can instantly transition between county, state and city radio systems ensuring improved coordination with surrounding counties and state agencies.
  • Active-Active Data Redundancy: True dual-path connectivity that leverages public safety-grade LTE paths alongside satellite data, eliminating single points of failure.
  • High-Speed, Low-Latency Field Data: Responders can seamlessly stream live drone video and telemetry, access geographic mapping systems, and run incident management software directly from the field.
  • Rapid Operational Deployment: The vehicle-mounted Starlink system connects automatically while in motion or immediately upon arriving at an incident scene, requiring no manual alignment or calibration.
  • Localized Field Wi-Fi: Each equipped vehicle can project a high-speed data bubble around a scene, allowing mutual aid partners from various jurisdictions to connect, share data, and collaborate.

This technology investment significantly enhances Anderson County’s localized resilience, ensuring that emergency operations can sustain continuous command, control, and multi-agency coordination during severe weather events, prolonged power outages, or technical infrastructure failures.

About the Anderson County Emergency Management Agency

The Anderson County Emergency Management Agency is responsible for coordinating disaster preparedness, mitigation, response, and recovery operations within Anderson County, Tennessee. Partnering with local, state, and federal entities, the agency works to safeguard the lives, property, and critical infrastructure of the community. To learn more, visit https://andersoncountytn.gov/emergency-management/.

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