By Stanley B. Chambers Jr.
The News & Observer
DURHAM, N.C. — Installation of the 800 megahertz digital radio system is almost complete at the Durham County Sheriff’s Office, where deputies are already benefiting from the upgrades.
The system allows deputies to communicate directly with Durham police, paramedics and other emergency personnel. Under the old 400 megahertz system, deputies were limited to a few talk channels and had to rely on emergency dispatchers to connect them to other agencies. The change also allows the Sheriff’s Office to utilize the statewide VIPER radio system, which is being constructed.
During searches for a missing man at Falls Lake in October and for a child in March, deputies were able to talk directly to a state Highway Patrol helicopter, which helped speed both manhunts.
The 800 system, which is computerized, utilizes “talkgroups,” in which some people can communicate on one channel while other frequencies remain free. An example would be emergencies in which responders can simultaneously talk to one another without switching channels. The system also allows for faster searches of available frequencies and for deputies to monitor Durham police channels in case a situation is happening near them.
The old system sometimes made deputies “feel like they were on an island by themselves,” said Maj. Mike Andrews, who oversees operations for the Sheriff’s Office. “Now they’re more capable to talk with whoever.”
The Sheriff’s Office has wanted to upgrade the radio system for years, but the cost was prohibitive. The department, along with the city of Durham, applied for and received a $2.6 million federal technology grant, $661,000 of which was matched by the county.
The city also used the money to upgrade the radios. Orange County got a separate $1.3 million grant for an 800 system.
Durham deputies received 245 car radios, 310 hand-held radios and six station radios, among other items and upgrades, from the federal money. The department started receiving the new equipment, all from Motorola, in February 2007.
The four consoles at the department’s dispatch center were switched over in December. Upgrades at the jail were completed about three weeks ago. All that’s left is outfitting the department’s four motorcycles with the radios.
Copyright 2008 The News & Observer