Multi-band access, $137,272 buy ups regional coverage
The Middlesex County Board of Supervisors (MCBS) approved a motion to purchase 45 multi-band portable radios on Nov. 5 for a price of $137,272 to be used by sheriff’s office deputies, firefighters and rescue squad personnel.
This will enable public safety and emergency services officials to communicate with out-of-county officials when there is a regional emergency.
Middlesex’s old single band radios communicated within the county but did not always work with out-of-county deputies, firefighters and emergency services personnel who used multi-band radios. The county has been considering a switch to multi-band for sometime.
“When our people go into other counties to help fight fires or work a bad accident we cannot always communicate by radio because we are on a single band system,” said Layman.
Jamaica District Supervisor Wayne Jessie, who is a firefighter for the Middlesex Volunteer Fire Department in Urbanna, said this is a “must” purchase as he has seen the problems that have surfaced over the years because of the different radio systems.
“This has been a safety issue for some time,” said Jessie. “The total switch from single band to multi-band radios will make our citizens and our firemen safer.”
