By Jim Hook
Public Opinion
FRANKLIN COUNTY, Pa. — The Federal Communication Commission has approved new frequencies for Franklin County’s 911 system that should ultimately provide better emergency communication between agencies in all areas of the county.
FCC approval had snagged the county’s new dispatch system for months. FCC gave its approval June 25.
Franklin County 911 center began dispatching Wednesday from the county’s new emergency dispatch center near Letterkenny Army Depot, but is still using the old frequencies, according to County Administrator John Hart. The new frequencies could be in use as early as the end of summer.
The county did not lose any service during the dispatchers’ move, according to Bryan Stevenson, county communications coordinator.
“Things went very well considering the magnitude of moving 911 services to another facility,” Stevenson said. “No calls went unanswered.”
The department is resolving some “very minor technical issues” that do not affect operations, Stevenson said. The major vendors Motorola, Capital Area Communications, CenturyLink and PlantCML worked well together.
The county will maintain backup operations at the old dispatch center in the courthouse basement for a while, Hart said.
The county has planned since 2003 to move dispatchers from the cramped, poorly ventilated courthouse basement. The county borrowed $4 million in 2004 to finance a communications system that would eliminate dead zones and allow police, fire and ambulance personnel to directly radio each other during emergencies.
The price of the communications center jumped from $2.7 million to $6.9 million a year ago. The county upgraded the plan to use a digital trunking system instead of an ultra-high frequency system whose function would have been marginal and short-lived, according to county officials. The county never had FCC approval for UHF and filed for approval of the frequencies for the digital system.
“The county could not do some final configurations and programming until the FCC approved the frequencies,” Hart said. “With approval, these items need to be completed. Also, the county needs to thoroughly test the new system before going on line. This testing will take several months.”
If all goes well, the county could be broadcasting on the new frequencies in late summer or early fall, according to Hart.
Administrative offices of the Department of Emergency Services moved a year ago to the new building, the renovated Building 426 at the Cumberland Valley Business Park in Greene Township.
Copyright 2010 Public Opinion