How many more people will die in the future because of our complacency — in this country and elsewhere?

How many times do we have to witness such disasters only to find that once again lack of communications is the greatest hindrance to rapid and accurate assessment of the impact? How many people could have been saved if communications were available to quickly obtain accurate situational awareness and better coordinate the resources for search and rescue?

We’ve heard over and over again from the media, “The lack of communications in Haiti is preventing … ”

Many have spent years working diligently to ensure that communities and organizations can communicate when disaster strikes. However, conflicting priorities and budget constraints have postponed spending in this area — yielding late-night pleas for communications gear in the immediate aftermath of each new disaster.

Another painful reminder that such communications cannot be an afterthought if we want to minimize loss of life among the victims!