Communication issues among first responders can 'exacerbate' disasters, Texas officials say

During a disaster, it often takes about 36 hours for all state and local emergency response agencies to be on one communications plan, which can slow down recovery efforts, Texas officials said Sept. 14.

This is because Texas does not have a single system to connect first responders in emergencies. Emergency response agencies and government organizations often operate on a network of radio systems that are not always compatible with the technology used by other local, state and federal teams.

"[This] is not simply a communication issue—it's a responder safety issue and an operational effectiveness issue," said Kyle Mills, head of planning and preparedness for the Texas A&M Forest Service. "As disasters become more complex, ensuring responders can communicate and share information seamlessly across agencies will remain one of our highest priorities."

One state lawmaker has vowed to pass legislation that would integrate first responder communications under a statewide system, with some emergency management experts calling interagency communications "the No. 1 issue" in the aftermath of disasters.

The big picture

State leaders said there are more than 50 different radio systems used by first responder agencies across Texas.

"We have situations where counties and cities are on separate ones—they have inoperability within their own community, and they never know it until they have to [communicate with] each other, and then they can't talk," state Rep. Ken King, R-Canadian, said during a Sept. 14 hearing of the House State Affairs Committee.

Some agencies use satellite phones or wireless networks built specifically for first responders, such as AT&T's FirstNet, although officials said each system has its limitations.

"We [also] have a few state agencies that have built out their own statewide radio network and share that with some others," said Nim Kidd, who leads the Texas Division of Emergency Management. "But my firm belief is there is no single statewide, state-owned radio system in the state of Texas today, and I think we should look at doing that together."

Kidd told the committee that when he joined the San Antonio Fire Academy about 34 years ago, he wasn't taught how to work and communicate with other agencies at an emergency scene. He said he didn't know if that kind of training had improved in recent years.

"The more we've talked about this in hearings, it seems like we're making micro steps in that direction," Kidd said Sept. 14. "But today, if a fire department is not does not have its own EMS agency, there's no guarantee that those firefighters have any idea what the EMTs or paramedics are going to need when they show up on the scene."

The background

King has twice attempted to address emergency communication issues by creating a Texas interoperability council, which would be tasked with coordinating a statewide communications strategy, supporting existing regional systems and improving how local, state and federal first responders work together. He first proposed the idea during the 2025 state legislative session, in response to 2024 wildfires that burned more than 1 million acres of land in the Texas Panhandle, killing three people and over 15,000 cattle.

At the time, King's bill passed the House but did not gain traction in the state Senate. He proposed a similar measure during special legislative sessions last summer, after floods in the Texas Hill Country killed more than 130 people. It again cleared the House but was not heard in the upper chamber.