EMC151  FIRE SERVICES FACE Y2K CHALLENGE   2/2  
To:   Emergency Communications Units - Information Bulletin
To:   Emergency Management Agencies via Internet and Radio
By:   Auxiliary Communications Service (ACS) of the
      California Governor's Office of Emergency Services  

EMC151  FIRE SERVICES FACE Y2K CHALLENGE   2/2  9/28/98

(continued from The FEMA Bulletin):

"By acting now, departments can ensure that Year 2000 incidents
are minor annoyances rather than major catastrophes.  Fire chiefs
are strongly encouraged to establish an open dialogue with
equipment suppliers and manufacturers. Take advantage of the
special services created to deal with this issue. Many
manufacturers have done mass mailings to inform customers of
their Year 2000 efforts. Special Internet sites with catalogs of
compliant and non-compliant products have been established. There
are also a number of manufacturers with 24-hour telephone support
hotlines.

"Fire departments should also undertake readiness programs to
troubleshoot potential problems and examine all mission-critical
systems. Good planning must also recognize that in spite of these
best efforts, some systems and network elements could fail on or
after January 1, 2000. Therefore fire departments and other
emergency service organizations must develop contingency plans.

"The USFA has developed a brochure addressing frequently asked
questions about Y2K. As part of its outreach to the fire and
emergency services, this brochure has been mailed to all fire
departments, State Fire Marshals, major fire service
organizations, and State Fire Training Directors.

"This information, along with a procedure for determining if a
computer system is Y2K compliant, has been posted on the USFA
World Wide Web site at www.usfa.fema.gov/y2kcom.htm.

"With the help of our partners at the state and local levels we
can get the word to the fire service community in adequate time
to devise solutions and avoid problems and confusion in the
future," Brown said.

"FEMA, including USFA, is actively working to make its internal
systems compliant.  FEMA and the FCC are also full and active
participants on the President's Council on Year 2000 Conversion. 
The FCC has established a Y2K page on the Internet, located at
www.fcc.gov/year2000/ which serves as a resource center
concerning the Year 2000 Problem and telecommunications,
including public safety communications.  The President's Council
on Year 2000 Conversion has also established a special Internet
web site at www.y2k.gov.

"The challenge of implementing Year 2000 readiness squarely rests
with those in charge of public safety offices, including fire
departments, nationwide.  Department chiefs and supervisors must
develop a clear understanding of what needs to be done to
successfully meet the Year 2000 Problem.  Public safety officials
must make certain that if Year 2000 related problems develop,
they have contingency plans in place.  Our national well-being,
the fabric of our communities depends on the reliability of
public safety communications services.

Editor's Note: Apple Computers do not seem to have been affected
by the Y2k problem.  IBM-compatible computers manufactured in the
last five years are also Y2K compliant.  To see if your computer
is Y2K tolerant, check under 'Y2K' on any one of the Internet's
available search engines. 
                               ---
ACS Web page: http://acs.oes.ca.gov       FTP archive:
ftp.ucsd.edu/hamradio/packet/tcpip/incoming for new
bulletins and ftp.ucsd.edu/hamradio/races for earlier ones.
Landline BBS: 916-262-0856 (graphical & standard interface).
Dave Larton, ACS Training Officer: email: Dave_Larton@oes.ca.gov
EOM EMC151