New radio network to help with multi-agency communication

A new emergency services radio network will be trialled in Canterbury next year to try to improve coordination between police and paramedics who were hampered during the Christchurch terror attack.

Poor communication between police and St John staff has emerged as a key issue in the inquest into the murder of 51 worshippers at Al Noor Mosque and Linwood Islamic Centre on March 15 in 2019.

The Coroners Court has heard crucial information, such as dispatching ambulances to Linwood and safety clearances at both mosques, was not passed on as it should have been.

An Armed Offenders Squad commander, who cannot be named, told the inquest he believed the new Public Safety Network would be trialled next year.

"There will be dedicated emergency services channels so emergency services will operate independently - but when a big job that requires better co-ordination comes up, everyone can just switch to a new digital channel that will provide that," he said.

The commander, who is one of New Zealand's foremost tactical experts, said staff would require training so they knew how to use the network properly without overloading it.

Emergency channels were overloaded during the terror attack, with many witnesses saying it was almost impossible to use the police radio during a constant stream of transmissions.

The AOS commander, who was on leave when the shooting happened, led team debriefs afterwards.

He told the inquest he only recently learned that badly injured people were left alone at Al Noor Mosque for more than 10 minutes because armed police were redeployed to the Linwood Avenue mosque.

"I was upset about it, certainly," he said.

International counter-terrorism experts earlier told the court it was unacceptable for police to leave the victims alone.

The commander told counsel assisting the coroner David Boldt that better coordination, including accurate situation reports from officers on the ground, would help to ensure that did not happen again.

The officer also told the inquest that the commander in charge of the AOS did not know there was a sniper course being held in Christchurch on the day of the attack, which meant he had access to more specially trained police staff.

He said the AOS chief should have known because it would have helped with coordinating resources.