Pat McTaggart, Telegraph Herald (Dubuque, IA)

ELKADER, Iowa – With the help of two Assistance to Firefighters grants, Clayton County emergency communications is undergoing a significant update. Phase I, of the three-phase project, is finished, includes simulcast paging and interoperability repeaters for emergency personnel.

The simulcast paging eliminates much of the unwanted traffic on the paging channel. There also is enhanced paging coverage by expanding the number of towers from three to five, using existing water towers in various communities.

Interoperability repeaters replaced the old county fire and emergency frequencies. Radios for emergency personnel are being reprogrammed to comply with federal narrow banding requirements. The cost for Phase I was paid for with a $320,000 Assistance to Firefighters grant and an additional $50,000 from the county and Emergency Management.

Phase II, which is expected to be completed by the end of January, provides a microwave system to the five communications towers to tie them together. It also will provide for future expansion of the system if necessary. The second phase was paid for with a $297,000 Assistance to Firefighters grant and a $15,600 county match.

“The technologies that Clayton County has replaced will help make the county compliant with all the new FCC regulations,” said Jeff Swift, who worked on the project for ComElect Services, of Dubuque.

Phase III will get both hand-held and vehicle radios for emergency personnel that can handle narrow band-mandated communications. Personal pagers for fire and emergency personnel also will be purchased. Clayton County Emergency Management Director Joel Biggs said the county has applied for a $250,000 Assistance to Firefighters grant for the equipment, which will be purchased if the grant is approved by FEMA this month.

A $500,000 grant application also has been submitted for Phase IV, which will provide a simulcast voice system for emergency personnel and will allow two-way communications. The grant also is dependent upon FEMA approval sometime this month.

“When completed, the new system will provide reliable and consistent communications to all emergency personnel in the county and it will also enhance communications to most of the dead spots in the county,” Biggs said. “It will also cut down on maintenance, since the equipment is brand new. Right now we have to find parts for equipment that is 30 or 40 years old.”

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