Signing alerts: reaching the deaf population <\/p>\n
April 6, 2008<\/p>\n
Jackie Leatherman <\/p>\n
EDINBURG – Hidalgo County’s deaf and hard-of-hearing should receive
\nemergency alerts quicker now a state program is in effect. <\/p>\n
Hidalgo and Cameron counties are among 22 coastal counties to soon
\nstart broadcasting emergency alerts on TV in sign language – possibly
\nby May 1. <\/p>\n
“They might be able to get out on their own, but not if they don’t
\nknow,” said Hidalgo County spokeswoman Cari Lambrecht. <\/p>\n
“We are missing a big part of the population.” <\/p>\n
The state uses $300,000 of U.S. Department of Homeland Security
\nfunding to contract with Deaf Link Inc., a San Antonio company that
\nprovides the interpretation through technology it developed. <\/p>\n
The company provides access to generic warnings in sign language
\nready to be aired on local television stations. Before, local station
\nexecutives had to hire a live person and pay them hourly to stand by
\nand translate. <\/p>\n
The new system is a “step forward in technology,” said Rose Landa, an
\ninterpreter coordinator at the University of Texas Brownsville. She
\nsaid it empowers the deaf population to find out alerts on their own
\nrather than having to rely on family members or neighbors, and to do
\nso quicker. <\/p>\n
A contract is pending with the state to allow translated alerts from
\nlocal communities, as well – such as the fires that recently burned in
\nthe area, said Bruce Whiteaker, broadcast project manager at Deaf
\nLink. <\/p>\n
“Many of the people who are deaf are reliant on American Sign
\nLanguage to the extent that they can’t read closed captions,”
\nWhiteaker said. “(They) complain that they go too fast or are written
\nat a level beyond their skills.” <\/p>\n
Whiteaker says studies say that roughly 10 percent of any given
\npopulation is hard of hearing, partially deaf or profoundly deaf. <\/p>\n
That would tally Rio Grande Valley’s hard-of-hearing population at
\nabout 140,000, he said, though those are just estimated figures. <\/p>\n
Jackie Leatherman covers Hidalgo County government and general
\nassignments at The Monitor. She can be reached at (956) 683-4424. <\/p>\n
Link:
\nhttp:\/\/www.themonitor.com\/news\/deaf_10653___article.html\/alerts_population.html<\/p>\n
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Signing alerts: reaching the deaf population April 6, 2008 Jackie Leatherman EDINBURG – Hidalgo County’s deaf and hard-of-hearing should receive emergency alerts quicker now a state program is in effect. Hidalgo and Cameron counties are among 22 coastal counties to…<\/p>\n