By Sonja Lee
Idaho Falls Post Register (Idaho)
Copyright2007The Post Register
All Rights Reserved
BLACKFOOT, Idaho — At least six different agencies responded to a brush fire in the Chubbuck area two years ago. No homes burned, but families were evacuated.
Fighting the fire wasn’t necessarily the biggest problem the crews faced - communicating with each other was.
None of the agencies involved used the same radio frequency, so the firefighting effort and the evacuation turned into a game of telephone tag.
“We had to call our dispatch, and our dispatch would call their dispatch, and their dispatch would call the units,” said Capt. Mike Sanders of the Bannock County sheriff’s office.
This was especially problematic, Sanders said, because the chance for error increased each time the message was relayed.
Unfortunately, that kind of radio communication problem isn’t rare or limited to Bannock or other eastern Idaho counties.
Perhaps the most notable instance was Sept. 11, 2001.
Police received a message that the second tower of the World Trade Center was going to collapse, but because the firemen in the building used different radios, they never received the message, and dozens died.
Since then, the federal government has directed states to create interoperability plans, said Sandpoint Police Chief Mark Lockwood, chairman of the Statewide Interoperability Executive Council, who is leading the change in Idaho.
In plain English, that means the state has set aside the 700 MHz frequency specifically for first responders so crews from multiple agencies can communicate directly via radios.
Bannock switched to the new frequency last year, and Bingham County is getting ready to follow suit.
“Once this gets up and running, we can talk to our dispatch anywhere in the state,” Bingham County Sheriff Dave Johnson said, adding that last week he was halfway to Salmon and was able use his new radio to talk to his dispatch center.
Having everyone on the same frequency also will come in handy during the Eastern Idaho State Fair and during a disaster or emergencies.
“We can have one command center and talk to everyone,” he said. “That wasn’t possible on the old system.”
Despite the benefits of the new system, the federal government doesn’t force agencies to switch to the higher frequency.
“The cost would be astronomical,” said Dale Nadler, logistic manager for the Homeland Security office in Idaho. “Every police car in the nation would have to get a new radio.”
For Idaho alone, the estimated costs are in the high $200 million range.
The Idaho Legislature set aside $3 million to improve emergency communications in hopes the federal government would chip in another $12 million to help with emergency communication. However, there is talk that if money becomes available, it would go to statewide improvements and not individual counties.
“The federal government is not driving this train,” Nadler said. “It’s the technology.”
By far the biggest advantage of the 700 MHz is that it is dedicated to first responders. The old frequencies are shared by commercial customers, so at times the signals would bleed together, making it hard for emergency crews to understand each other.
The FCC put guard channels on both sides of the 700 MHz frequency so bleeding can’t happen.
The new signals also are digital, allowing dispatch to send more information over the radios. Static is nonexistent, and when the signal reaches the end, it just stops.
The new system will eliminate dead spots in Bingham County. The officers will be able to get the information they need, no matter where they are.
“It’s safer for the officers and better for the public,” Johnson said.
The new technology didn’t come without a price, which is why only a handful of counties have plans to switch over.
Most of the new systems were paid for by grants from the Department of Homeland Security. Sanders said he believed the grants equaled about $1 million; the other agencies with the county used the 911 surcharge on phones to match funds.
And because the system bears a high price tag, officials in Madison, Fremont and Bonneville counties say it will be awhile before they can afford it.
The current system works, officials said.
Until funding becomes available, the counties will make upgrades they can afford.
“We want the 700 system,” said Lt. Bruce Bowler of the Madison County sheriff’s office. “But we have a responsibility to the citizens we serve not to bankrupt them.”