Regional Resiliency Initiative Ensures Uninterrupted 911 Services

Two of Washington State's largest 911 centers, Snohomish County 911 (SNO911) and Valley Com 9-1-1, have formed an innovative partnership to ensure continuity of emergency communications services during disruptions or system outages. This Regional Resiliency Initiative combines Next Generation 911 (NG911) capabilities with a custom cloud-based Computer Aided Dispatch (CAD) solution named CAD-L.

On June 5th, the centers successfully conducted a live 911 call re-routing drill that validated this initiative, seen as the first resiliency solution of this scale introduced in the U.S.

SNO911 created CAD-L, a cloud-hosted backup CAD system accessed via browser, to maintain dispatch capabilities during downtimes. This system operates independently and supports essential features to manage emergency responses, designed for ease of use with minimal training.

The partnership between SNO911 and Valley Com 9-1-1 leverages their similar size, call volumes, and staffing levels. Although the centers are over 40 miles apart, the collaboration proved effective across the state. CAD-L provides core CAD functionality tailored for each agency, hosted securely on AWS GovCloud.

SNO911 Board President Jon Nehring highlighted this achievement, stating it enhances the resiliency of the 911 system for over 1.5 million residents, ultimately saving lives.