Verizon hosts disaster response training exercises in Perry

PERRY, Georgia (41NBC/WMGT) – For some, it can be a scary moment to witness  a flood, tornado or even a terror attack.

First responders are learning new approaches to save lives.

“Verizon worked countless hours 24/7 with a lot of urgency partnering with New York City and the other responders, folks on Wall Street to get Wall Street and the stock exchange back up,” says Mike Maiorana, Senior Vice President Public Sector at Verizon Wireless, as he reflected on his response involvement during the terrorists attacks on 9/11.

“What was most important to Verizon was to get the telecommunications back up,” he adds.

During a time of disaster like this, Maiorana confirms Verizon’s 4GLT network is effective. First responders, Georgia state and local government officials and business partners, attended a disaster response exercise in Perry on Thursday to take a look at how the different technologies can help in an emergency situation.

“We have command and control applications so a first responder command unit can keep track of where his assets are both physical and human to ensure the safety of the first responders as they’re going into and out of the buildings,” Maiorana explains.

“They can get into tight areas and search for victims and just give us a better idea of what we’ve got on multi-story floors. Without that we would actually have to go in,shore up the structure and physically do searches,” team leader at G-Star Task Force 4 Dean Christian adds.

In a disaster such as flooding, first responders are able to use Verizon Wireless technology such as drones to save lives.

“A person was identified floating and we were able to provide a life preserver by a UAS system to that individual which would ultimately prolong how long they could sustain floating out there,” says Tim Maloney Vice President of Business Development at Guardian Centers in Perry.

The exercises allow responders to test what they already know and discover what they don’t know using reliable technology to save lives.

Verizon Wireless representatives say their main goal is to help responders do their job when they need to do their job at the most difficult time.