Washington County approves new contract to upgrade 911 radio system

WASHINGTON COUNTY, Pa. — Public safety radios in Washington County can be an issue. In fact, more than half the time firefighters and officers are pulling out their cell phones to find out what is going on.

“The radios are very frustrating just because we never know how reliable they are going to be,” said Abigal France who’s a North Strabane Police Officer.

France’s handheld to her car radio was up in the air daily because the public safety radio system is outdated and still running analog in the county.

“Washington County did a feasibility and communication study on the radios and found that were at a 30 to 35% coverage and the mandate from Department of Homeland Security is that you have 95% coverage,” said Washington County Commissioner Nick Sherman.

An update and upgrade is something first responders have begged for.

“It’s very scary for me. I mean this is my lifeline and I would like it to work as often as possible,” France said.

On Monday, commissioners approved a nearly $25 million contract with Motorola to do just that.

“We are looking at two years. So two years from now we will have two to three new towers we are building and just outfitting everything,” Sherman said.

So until then officers will continue to rely on cell phones for backup communication and await the day the new system goes live.

“I honestly never thought I would have to worry about it, that’s my lifeline it should work all the time and shouldn’t be something we have to worry about,” France said.

Washington County is also partnering with neighboring counties and adding on to their towers in Upper St. Clair, Elizabeth Township and potentially one in Monessen to provide coverage further out.

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