STATE
OF WASHINGTON
EMERGENCY ALERT SYSTEM
Approved by the
Federal Communications Commission, March
3, 1997
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January 13, 2010
Present: Terry Spring-KWPX TV; Mark Allen-WSAB; Tom Sharp-Pierce County; Phil Johnson-CPS LECC Clay Freinwald
Via Phone: Ruth Brownstein-KAOS; Don White-KCPQ; Bob Wyatt-Alaska; Mindy Matson-Renton; Bob Digman-Tacoma Fire Dispatch; Kris McGowan-FCC
Clay Freinwald called the meeting to order and introductions were made. The previous minutes were approved. It was decided to keep the previous minutes on the WSAB web site for an indefinite period of time.
Recently there was a live test of the EAN in Alaska. Overall, the results were good, although there were a few glitches. Bob Wyatt reported that no cable systems forwarded the test because the Trilithic box, which they all use, doesn't work the same as other boxes. There was something wrong with the message that was originated in Washington DC. The other boxes ignored the problem. The issue is being addressed. On the broadcast side, the DASDEC box made by Monroe Electronics doesn't ignore duplicate EAN's, so stations using it aired the test twice. That is also being fixed. There was little public reaction to the test. They started publicizing it early on.
It would be helpful if some one started forwarding the header codes from the EAS tests to the remailer, especially if there is a problem. This would be especially easy if the station keeps an electronic EAS log.
Once again, KIRO-FM is not a substitute for KIRO-AM for EAS monitoring purposes. The PEP entry point is at the AM transmitter site and directly feeds the transmitter. If KIRO cannot be received, the SRN is the second choice. The redundant backup path is through NPR and KPLU.
The CMAS Standards have been adopted by the FCC. See http://www.fcc.gov/pshs/services/cmas.html.
ENTERCOM has sold their tower sites to American Tower. Therefore, Clay's job is up in the air.
The SBE EAS remailer is a great resource. Sign up at http://www.sbe.org/eas_exchange.php. There has been a lot of discussion of the Alaska Test there, which is available on the archive.
We still need someone to represent the cable industry on the SECC.
The Green River was discussed. So far it has been OK. The Bustos AM nighttime site is in the flood plain. The equipment there was raised 4 feet.
We are still looking for electronic copies of the local area plans. Please send them to Don Miller so they can be archived. If your plan does not exist in electronic form, now might be a good time to update it.
The revised Central Puget Sound local area plan was submitted by Phil Johnson. It was mostly cleaned up and reorganized. It was approved. If you want a copy, contact Phil.
The 6th National EAS Summit will be held on March 1 in Washington DC. Clay Freinwald and Don Miller are invited. On February 1 there will be a Congressional Staff briefing on EAS.
The Spokane County local AMBER plan was presented to the committee. There are a couple of minor issues. It was approved with conditions. That plan includes a Missing Endangered Persons Advisory for people that do not meet the requirements for an AMBER alert. This does not involve an EAS activation.
The FCC has had a moratorium on NAL's for EAS violations after the KWVE incident last fall. This has been lifted, and the FCC is again looking for stations that are out of compliance with EAS regulations. The FCC is also looking for employees.
The 2010 EAS RMT Test schedule is now on the WSAB web site. See http://www.wsab.org/2010%20RMT%20Schedule_new.pdf. It was added after the final test of 2009.
Volunteers are needed for the Technical Committee.
As a reminder, emergency EAS messages need to be forwarded as quickly as possible. First, time is important in possible life or death situations. Second, EAS boxes will dump a message in their buffer if another one comes in. In a major emergency, such as flooding on the Green River, there might be many alerts in a short period of time.
Now is a good time to check the filters on your EAS box to make sure it will relay the correct alerts for your coverage area. Time settings are also important for proper forwarding. In the Pacific Time Zone, the proper UTC offset is +8 hours during Standard Time, +7 during Daylight Savings Time.
The next meeting will be Wednesday, March 10, at 9:30 AM at Camp Murray.
Terry Spring
Chief Engineer
KWPX TV/DT
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