Mike Maiorana, Verizon’s senior vice president for the Public Sector, recently addressed the audience at the opening session of the 2017 APCO Conference in Denver, CO.
Prior to introducing the session’s keynote speaker, Maiorana recognized the conference attendees for the work they do keeping first responders connected across the country.
“The work you do is invaluable, not only to our public safety agencies and our brave first responders, but also to the communities they serve,” he said.
“Our first responders depend on effective communication for the mission-critical information they need to assess a situation, establish command and control, and get down to the important work of saving lives.”
He went on to reinforce Verizon’s commitment to public safety and to working with public safety communicators to ensure first responders have the connectivity they need to respond to emergencies large and small.
“We each understand the challenges that come with responding to emergencies,” he said, “and we each step up to meet those challenges when they arise.”
For the public safety community, Maiorana said, it means meeting emergency situations head-on, citing public safety’s response to crises such as wildfires in the West, tornadoes and flooding in the heartland and the South, and the threat of hurricanes along the East Coast.
For Verizon, it means providing them with effective and reliable communications during those times of emergency, and investing in the technologies and solutions that make those communications possible.
“We’ve earned the trust of first responders. In turn, they’ve made Verizon a leading provider of communications services to public safety in the country,” Maiorana said. “That’s a responsibility we take very seriously.”
A responsibility, he said, that’s reflected in Verizon’s 2.4 million square mile 4G LTE network that provides the fast and reliable communications that are so essential in a crisis situation; in cities like Boston and Sacramento, where we’re investing millions of dollars on new fiber networks and deploying new smart cities solutions to build connected communities; and in our continuing network evolution to 5G technology and all the possibilities it holds for first responders.
Maiorana also reminded the audience of Verizon’s established ecosystem of technology providers we can call on to help deploy other advanced technologies to support first responders in an emergency. Technologies demonstrated at Operation Convergent Response in June, including drones, autonomous vehicles, robotics, artificial intelligence, telemedicine applications, and advanced cyber security technologies to keep our networks safe.
Later in the week, Verizon reaffirmed its commitment to public safety by announcing plans to build its own dedicated network for first responders, providing access to the company’s 2.4 million square mile 4G LTE network.
And when Hurricane Harvey brought devastation to southeast Texas in late August, the company responded with support personnel and equipment on the ground, and a $10 million commitment to fund ongoing relief efforts. That was followed by preparations for Hurricane Irma to keep our network up and running for first responders and all customers as that storm bore down on Florida and the southeastern U.S.
“Verizon’s commitment to public safety and our communities is unwavering and will never change,” Maiorana said at APCO. “We understand the significant challenges you face every day, and we have the technology and expertise to help you meet those challenges. Together, we can work to create safer and more secure communities.”
Learn more about Verizon’s solutions for law enforcement and public safety.
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