7/29/14 - The County Public Safety and Infrastructure & Development Committee has approved a budget amendment that will make the final payment on a service that helped 911 Dispatch organize efforts during Saturdayâs phone outage. Central Dispatch is seeking to pay roughly $260,000 on the simulcast VHF radio system. 911 EMS Director Jeff Boyd says the system allows dispatch to page 500 emergency services personnel from all eight local fire departments at once. Dispatch acquired the system over the past year and a half after it was announced that emergency services would have to reduce their radio communications to a narrow frequency band or upgrade to a VHF radio system. Boyd says Livingston County chose to upgrade, and it has served them well. He tells WHMI it certainly worked out when the telecommunications disruption on Saturday. While the computers used by dispatch and vehicles were unable to connect, the VHF simulcast system worked just fine and helped emergency services organize their efforts. The budget amendment to pay that final bill will go to the county finance committee for review on Wednesday. It will have to go before the full board of commissioners for final approval. (TD)
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