Jefferson County first responders may be getting improvements to their communications systems over the next few months.
Disaster and Emergency Services Coordinator Doug Dodge told The Monitor that he has two projects in the works that are designed to improve dispatching and address overall communications issues first responders in the county have faced.
The first project would improve the ability to dispatch and communicate with multiple responding agencies during emergencies. Currently, law enforcement, ambulance and fire services in the county are paged to incidents from a single, central dispatch center in Boulder. The new system would be able to place dispatchers at any location, using the Starlink satellite system to send out calls. Once responders arrive to an emergency location, the new system is designed to simplify on-site communications between emergency workers using a “simulcast radio” system.
“Not everyone in the state uses the same radio frequencies for the same reasons,” Dodge explained. “The new system will allow us to tie the different channels together quickly.”
While the remote dispatching system has obvious benefits during emergencies, it also has value in non-emergency, complex incidents, such as concerts or other large gatherings, Dodge said. “Sometimes during those big events, it can be very hard to get in touch with Dispatch for information or request help. This system should help with that problem.”
The Remote Dispatching project would be funded by a $66,000 grant from the Homeland Security Agency, with no local tax dollars involved. Dodge is expecting to receive a final decision on the grant award shortly. The project is expected to start this summer, and to be completed by summer 2025.
In the meantime, Dodge is working on a second communications project, which also would be fully financed by a grant. This project involves replacing and upgrading radio repeaters used by emergency agencies throughout the county. Handheld and portable radios used by police and firefighters rely on 11 different repeaters to facilitate radio communications when mountains and valleys block radio waves, Dodge explained. “These things reached end of life (for support) in 2013,” he said. “They need to be replaced.”
Dodge would use an $80,000 Cooperative Fire Protection Capacity grant from Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation to fund the radio repeater project. He hopes to begin the replacements this fall, and have all 11 repeaters replaced by spring of next year.
