 The room's construction began late last winter, just down the hall
from the Logan County Emergency Management Agency, which is in the
basement of the Logan County Public Safety Complex.
Room construction and equipment setup is nearing completion. The
basic structure of the room, furniture, circuits, switches, wiring,
Internet access and computers are in and being tweaked for placement
by those who will work in the room. Training is expected to begin in
mid-November as the system becomes functional, with the anticipation
of going "live" at the end of November or beginning of December.
One new feature being added as the new system goes online is the
GIS mapping. County engineer Bret Aukamp has overseen the
development of the county mapping project. This map will aid
emergency communications greatly by providing visual locations for
the communication room personnel and to responders in the field.
The new computer hardware will allow the integration of multiple
databases and thereby provide expansive and immediate information to
all its users, which will include the 911 dispatch, the Lincoln
Police Department, Logan County Sheriff's Department and the Logan
County state's attorney's office.
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The system's full development could take 24 to 36 months. A basic
timeline is as follows:
-
Six months: Add
caller ID, cross-referenced by name, address and section of
county; track a cell phone caller.
-
Six to eight months:
Add computer-aided dispatch from New World Systems; integrates
911 dispatch, the Lincoln Police Department, Logan County
Sheriff's Department and the jail.
-
Nine to 12 months:
Emergency landline and emergency operating center upgrade.
-
12-16 months:
Voice-over; increased capability of locating a caller to within
five to six feet.
-
24-36 months:
Countywide upgrade; FCC override; narrow banding in all
emergency response systems and vehicles.
-
36-48 months: More
users from more departments; enhanced 911 wireless in all squad
cars; photos, such as suspects and maps.
The changes and upgrades to the emergency communications system
have been largely funded through federal grants that U.S. Rep. Ray
LaHood has acquired on behalf of Logan County.
[By JAN YOUNGQUIST]
Past related article:
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