New emergency vehicle radios installed

During February, the last of 66 emergency radios were installed in all emergency vehicles in the county. This means that every police, EMS, fire, and sheriff vehicle’s radio now fits P25 standards, the current parameters for public safety organizations in the U.S. Though the radios have more power and somewhat better range than their predecessors, one step remains to ensure the county will have adequate coverage for emergency communication in the future: increasing tower coverage, which the county hopes to be able to do within the next two years.

In the spring of 2016, the county was able to purchase a powerful console radio and new phones for the dispatch center, phase one of the communications overhaul. Both county governments and the state are working to improve infrastructure so that new radios, like the ones Wright County has, will have enough coverage and be able to seamlessly connect counties and state organizations if needed in emergencies. This means that many Iowa counties are trying to fund similar projects. “It’s pretty much across the state of Iowa right now,” said Sheriff Jason Schluttenhofer, adding, “The rural counties are the ones that are struggling.”

Colleen Meier, Wright County communications director, said that now that the new vehicle radios are installed, dispatchers are noticing a difference in the reach and clarity of their radio communications. “It’s helped out quite a bit,” she said. “Our tower wasn’t tall enough was the problem, but now that the radios have more power, even reaching off the shorter tower, it’s been a better radio system.”

For more about the county's plans to improve emergency communication, see the February 23 edition of the Monitor.