Emergency Milestones

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CEPIN's milestone

2006	The CEPIN Project hosts four pilot courses of the “Emergency Responders and the Deaf and Hard of Hearing Community: Taking the First Steps to Disaster Preparedness” training. They take place in San Francisco, Tulsa, Okla., Boston and Philadelphia.
2006	The “Emergency Responders and the Deaf and Hard of Hearing Community: Taking the First Steps to Disaster Preparedness” training receives course approval from the Department of Homeland Security. This opens the door for 15 more trainings being held this fall.
2005	Gallaudet University and the Trace Center hosted the Accessible Emergency Notification and Communication: State of the Science Conference in November.
2004	TDI participates in the first annual America Prepared Campaign during National Preparedness Month.
2004	U.S. Department of Homeland Security awards TDI nearly a $1.5 million competitive training grant to implement the Community Emergency Preparedness Information Network (CEPIN) and train deaf and hard of hearing consumers and emergency responders about disaster preparedness involving people with hearing losses.
2004	NVRC and DHHCAN release 40-page report on disaster preparedness and emergency communications, giving America's communication network systems for deaf and hard of hearing citizens a failing grade for not being accessible.
2004	San Antonio, Texas law enforcement sets up VRI in law enforcement stations across the city for deaf victims and witnesses to report crimes in sign language.
2004	Sacramento, Calif. law enforcement accepts 9-1-1 calls from deaf citizens using text pagers.
2004	FCC clarifies rules that emergency news access regulations do cover acts of terrorism in response to a complaint brought on by a community service agency decrying the lack of accessible news on the D.C. Sniper spree in October 2002.
2003	For emergencies, TTY relay calls must be routed to the nearest appropriate PSAP, not necessarily the geographically closest PSAP.
2003	One of TDI's The GA-SK issues covers local advocacy; recognizing several advocates Diane Edge (MD), Beth Compton (TX) and Donna Platt (WA) for their emergency preparedness activities.
2003	Hospitals nationwide turn to Video Remote Interpreting (VRI) to address accessibility issues by deaf and hard of hearing patients.
2002	TDI filed joint comments to the FCC with the NAD opposing the petition of several digital wireless service providers to extend the time or waive their responsibilities to make their network digital-TTY 9-1-1 compatible.
2002	FCC receives report from Alliance of Telecommunication Industry Solutions (ATIS) on successful rollout of wireless digital handsets that are compatible with TTYs and allow VCO calls in spite of spotty 9-1-1 equipment compatibility.
2001	On Sept. 11, terrorists hijack airlines and attacked the World Trade Center in New York City, the Pentagon near Washington, D.C. and crashed in a Pennsylvania field en-route to Washington, D.C. Following the attacks, TDI rushed an issue of The GA-SK on disaster preparedness. TDI signs on with National Organization of Disabilities' Statements of Principles and Responsibilities in Emergency Preparedness by and for People with Disabilities, which was then presented to Tom Ridge, Director of Homeland Security.
2001	The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) under the U.S. Department of Commerce develops weather radios with strobe lights and vibrating alarms to alert deaf and blind citizens of approaching severe weather.
2001	Two localities in South Carolina initiate "reverse" 9-1-1 services to alert deaf and hard of hearing citizens of impending severe weather via TTY.
2001	FCC reminds television broadcasters of their emergency news accessibility requirements.
2000	VITAC introduces REACT, an emergency news captioning service, to help newscasters comply with new FCC regulations on access to television during emergencies.
2000	The Weather Channel begins 20 hours of captioning on its all-weather cable network.
2000	The FCC mandates increased accessibility of video programming to viewers with hearing and vision disabilities during local emergencies.
1998	National Association of the Deaf (NAD) forms NAD 9-1-1 / Emergency Warning Systems Committee to address concerns about accessible emergency warning systems for severe weather conditions or natural disasters.
1998	Several small towns in the Midwest distribute pagers to deaf citizens for tornados and severe weather warnings.
1997	TDI participates in two forums to study analog TTY access through digital wireless cellular networks to 9-1-1 systems.
1994	Under a grant from the Department of Justice, TDI develops TTY training kits, Emergency Access Self Evaluation (EASE), for training public safety personnel at Public Safety Answering Points.
1991	TDI works with Toni Dunne, ADA Chair of the National Emergency Number Association (NENA), to educate on accessibility issues to 9-1-1 professionals.
1990	The first President Bush signs the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which forbids discrimination based on disability in government services, including 9-1-1 emergency services.
1989	TDI discusses 9-1-1 access issues during its eighth convention under Deaf Way, an international conference hosted by Gallaudet University in Washington, D.C.
1972	Two lives were saved because someone used a TTY to get aid.
1972	St. Louis transmits news stories from UPI wire feeds while Indianapolis starts its weather service.
1971	TTYs are installed in the Dallas and Los Angeles law enforcement departments to receive emergency calls from deaf citizens.
1970	TTY news service begins in Washington, D.C. while Houston inaugurates it in its weather service.
1968	Weather News Service for deaf begins in St. Louis.
1945	As a young man anxious to help in the war effort, Martin Sternberg joins the American Red Cross in New York City. He was given a part-time job to send and receive messages to soldiers on Teletype (TTY) machines in the Military Welfare Unit. He didn’t realize that those machines would become a standard household item for thousands of deaf people a quarter of a century later.