Trumbull County is one of only four counties in Ohio that has yet to transition to a radio communication system capable of communicating easily with public safety agencies, reported the Tribune Chronicle.
According to Ernest Cook, executive director of the Trumbull County 911 Center, “We do not have a robust system in Trumbull County. If you leave the area of operation, you can’t communicate…There is one department, that every time it rains, they get water in the lines. Another one, their radios don’t work in the fog. The system is analog, coming through on crowded bandwidth and the quality is just not there, it’s vulnerable.”
That’s why Cook is leading the charge to fund a centralized system complete with local public safety departments investing in new digital radios that work with the Multi-Agency Radio Communication System (MARCS), which is the state’s response to gaps in public safety communication.
Construction on MARCS began in 2000, and in 2013, $90 million in upgrades expanded its service capacity. Currently, there are 300 MARCS towers in the state. “Now all but four of Ohio’s 88 counties are on the digital communication network that uses fiber optics and microwaves for transmissions that sound “crystal clear,’” Cook said.
For Trumbull County to obtain the right infrastructure – 10 MARCS consoles – it would need to pay an estimated $1.13 million. The dual band consoles will be able to communicate with the old analogue radios most of the county’s departments have, Cook said. Post-transition to the new system, the county will save $150,000 a year on maintenance of the current towers.
As a next step, Cook is working with local departments, including police and fire, to consider upgrading to digital radios. According to Warren police Chief Eric Merkel, “Our radio system is at the end of its life, and we are ready to move on to something more comprehensive.” According to Merkel, the system is 20 years old and dependent on crowded bandwidth that results in sometimes static-filled transmissions.
“The number one priority is public safety. We need to be able to hear each other over the radios, we need communication between police, fire and EMS. Right now, we are broadcasting on an island. We need to be able to communicate across the board in a crisis,” Merkel said.
February 23, 2018
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