By HEATHER KEELS
heather.keels@herald-mail.com
WASHINGTON COUNTY — Washington County’s consolidated 911 center and new emergency communications system are undergoing extensive testing as officials prepare for activation early next year, according to Fire and Emergency Services Director Kevin L. Lewis.
Operators will move into the new 911 center during the first few weeks of January, but will continue to use the current radio system before phasing in the new system when testing is complete, said Pete Lowenheim, communications maintenance manager.
The $27.8 million project has been in the works since 2001, and involves consolidating dispatchers for fire, rescue, and city, county and state law enforcement agencies into one state-of-the-art 911 center. It also switches to a radio system that will allow the agencies to communicate directly with each other and with the county’s public works employees.
The projected activation date for the new communications system has been pushed back several times over the course of the project, with previous targets of July, then September, of this year.
Lowenheim said officials set those target dates knowing there were “lots of unknowns” in the multifaceted project that could push back the activation. The project’s many components include radio towers, new radios and complex electrical equipment, all of which must be fully tested before use, he said.
“One thing you can’t do with a mission-critical system is say, ‘It looks like it’s working pretty well, let’s go on the air,’” Lowenheim said. “It’s got to work. If our computers go down, we could lose a life.”
Lowenheim said that based on the pace at which the project is moving, he expects communications staff to begin operating at the new center, but on the current system, after the holidays, during the first two weeks in January.
One reason for choosing that time frame was the availability of the Verizon professionals who will need to switch the system over to direct 911 calls to the new center, Lowenheim said.
The county will phase in the new radio system as soon as possible, starting with law enforcement, then adding fire and rescue, then public works, as radio installation and training is completed for each respective group, Lowenheim said.
The testing process for the radio towers and control equipment involves a “burn-in” process, in which the equipment must be turned on for a long period of time to test its reliability, Lowenheim said. Experts also will be checking to make sure the transmitters are on frequency, the receivers have the necessary sensitivity, the antenna system is functioning properly and the backup power supplies put out the correct amount of power, he said.
In the new 911 center on Elliott Parkway near Williamsport, the dispatch console equipment also must be tested to make sure every mouse, keyboard, monitor and push-to-talk foot switch is working, Lowenheim said.
Meanwhile, the current emergency services dispatch center at 33 W. Washington St., which will be used as a backup center, is still being configured for use with the new system, he said.
The new radios have been installed in all law enforcement vehicles, but the county is just beginning to install them in fire and EMS vehicles, and has not gotten to the public works radios, Lowenheim said.
Construction on the new 911 center is complete, and a few of the county’s fire and emergency services administrative employees have already moved into their new offices, Lewis said.
About 80 percent of the training has been completed for personnel to operate the new system, he said.
In addition to training for dispatchers and other communications staff, the new 911 center’s classrooms are being used for advanced life support classes, law enforcement training, and a volunteer fire and rescue high school program, Lewis said.
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| From: WashCoWatcher Tue 03 Nov 2009 06:01:15 AM EST | I can't wait for the first major screw up which "the county" will respond to by declaring they need to spend more money on upgraded equipment. You know it will happen because it does with every other enterprise undertaken by the county. Wanna bet? |
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| From: storms Tue 03 Nov 2009 08:05:42 AM EST | Is the new system Motorola UHF FM...or will it be a "trunked" system, such as that of Frederick County (Md). Washington County has needed this for quite some time...as the current VHF Low system is SOOOOOOOOOOO obsolete and prone to trouble. Also...Any citizens that want to recieve the new communications will have to get a "trunking" scanner, and pitch their current ones. Average price for a new scanner...$200-$300. Bearcat (online) has great products and prices (I went there for mine). |
| From: notlaffen Tue 03 Nov 2009 08:34:03 AM EST | "The $27.8 million project has been in the works since 2001"-Well, maybe?The first reference I found was 06/18/2002 article by Tara Reilly.Back in the old days, the costs was a lot less-see 03/02/2005 article by Tara Reilly.It would be informative for this newspaper to print a summary of the county's actions and statements on this project.It is a testament to the county's need to spend our money and perseverance that despite numerous and expensive cost overruns, highly paid consultants, and repeated delays in implementation that we are finally getting what we haven't needed for 234 years, a too expensive Emergency Operations Center with more county employees which may not work and will not have state of the art equipment.It is a shame that this article does not review the history of the project because it could be a case study of how mistakes are made by the county government. |
| From: HagerKen Tue 03 Nov 2009 12:00:38 PM EST | Storms, this is a Motorola P25 UHF digital system. And let me know where you found a compatible scanner for $200-300. It's rare to find a new one for less than $400-500, even on sale. A scanner will not work with this new county radio system unless can monitor digital trunked systems. |
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