Countywide fire dispatch could cost $2-M
Posted By VALERIE MACDONALD VMACDONALD@NORTHUMBERLANDTODAY.COM
Posted 2 months ago
To eliminate "black holes" in fire radio coverage and paging transmissions, the county's fire co-ordinator is asking every municipal council and Northumberland's county council to endorse the next step in creating a new, consolidated communications system. It would also address various other difficulties with dispatching fire personnel, along with channel congestion.
The system would give fire calls the priority they should have, county fire-co-ordinator and Cobourg Fire Chief Al Mann said in an interview.
In addition to the required equipment, fire chiefs of the various departments throughout Northumberland support a "purpose-built, centralized fire dispatch centre," he said.
Currently there are three different dispatch systems at different locations, and some private contractors handle more than just the contract to dispatch for fires and medical assistance.
The proposed three-channel VHF simulcast system could cost upwards of $2-million "depending on the final configuration," Hamilton Township councillors were told by Mann during this week's council session. The next step is for a Request for Proposals (RFPs) to design such a system.
"The RFP document will request detailed cost estimates for both equipment and installation so that firm costs of the project can be determined," Mann said.
"There are no costs involved in this step and this is not a commitment to purchase," he stressed.
Every municipal council, plus county council, must agree before this can go forward, Mann added.
The preliminary estimate for just the equipment, not a location, is between $1.6 million and $2 million, at this time. This cost includes those shared by all participants and those specific to the municipality or county. These specific costs range from a low of $6,150 for Cobourg which has just one station and so only requires one encoder, eight mobile radios, six portable radios, two base radios and 30 pagers, to a high of $18,570 for Trent Hills which has three sta- tions and needs three encoders, 17 mobile radios, 61 portable radios, three base radios and 62 pagers.
The other municipal costs to be paid individually would be: Port Hope -$18,000; Alnwick/Haldimand -$17,125; Hamilton Township -$16,650; Brighton -$11,550; and Cramahe Township -$11,350.
Where would a dispatch centre be built? asked Hamilton Township Councillor Isobel Hie.
It could be in an existing municipal or county location or on a private site, councillors were told.
There might be space in the county's new EMS building in the former Kraft plant in Cobourg, Mann said, or possibly in one of the apartments in Port Hope's main fire hall.
Would this help the ambulance/ fire crossover problems? asked Councillor Gary Woods.
"I believe so," replied Mann.
At this time, he said, the protocol related to when the fire department is dispatched to a medical call before the ambulance can arrive is different throughout the county. With just one centre and one protocol, the dispatching would be more consistent.
Hamilton Township council will decide whether to support the next step for a new countywide communications program at a meeting in December, Mayor Mark Lovshin told Mann.
