With a year under its belt, the county’s new P-25 radio communication system has been helpful to several area departments.
That according to Putnam County Sheriff Eddie Farris. Farris said the system’s big benefit is the ability for departments to communicate with each other statewide. Farris said school resource offers have been able to use the system, which has been helpful. Farris said that the P-25 system is not yet 100 percent universal in the county.
“We’re still having to operate and use the current system,” Farris said. “The old system, you might say that we’re still using too. So it’s going to be a little while before this thing is fully, fully implemented and the system is completely working, but it’s certainly moving in the right direction.”
Farris said the system has worked well for deputies travelling across the state transporting inmates, as they can call dispatch with their radio rather than a cell phone. Farris said the next step to making the P-25 system perfect is the addition of more towers.
Farris said the state is working to install two more towers to remove coverage gaps in rural parts of the county. Farris said the state is currently in the process of purchasing land to build a tower on both the east and west sides of the county. Farris said he does not know of a timeframe, but he hopes they are installed in the next year.
“It won’t just help Putnam County, but it will help others who are moving through, in and around our county that’s on this same system,” Farris said. “Which means other law enforcement, whether it’s state, one of the state agencies, or some of the local agencies that’s been able to go to the P-25 system.”
The system makes this inter-department communication much easier, as a Putnam County deputy can simply flip a switch to talk with agencies like the State Highway Patrol or TWRA.
“Let me make myself clear, when we’re answering calls out here that involves danger or things of that nature, we will be the only ones able to hear that,” Farris said. “It’s not a shared system where first responders and everybody can just go to our channel and hear all the radio traffic and what’s going on.”
Farris said other first responders like fire departments and EMS can also use the P-25 system. He said the channel is scrambled for safety reasons and to prevent unwanted people from appearing at an emergency scene.
Farris said the state has encouraged departments to begin using the P-25, but it’s high price tag has made it tougher on rural departments.
Farris said the Sheriff’s Office received a $2 million grant a couple of years ago to purchase the P-25 radios for themselves,as well as the Baxter and Monterey Police Departments. He said other small departments are starting to impliment the system too.