FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 17, 2008

ALTMIRE: EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS SYSTEM UPGRADES WILL HELP IMPROVE PUBLIC SAFETY IN BEAVER COUNTY

Altmire secured $681,500 in federal budget to modernize emergency responders' communications infrastructure

(Beaver, PA) — U.S. Congressman Jason Altmire (PA-04); Beaver County Commissioners Tony Amadio, Charlie Camp, and Joe Spanik; and local first responders met today to discuss progress being made in efforts to upgrade the Beaver County Emergency Services Center’s radio communications system. Congressman Altmire secured $681,500 to upgrade Beaver County Emergency Services Center’s public radio system in the final federal budget that passed the House in December.
 
“The Emergency Services Center is the clearinghouse for disaster response efforts in Beaver County,” Altmire said. “This communications upgrade will greatly improve first responders’ ability to communicate when they are out in the field. The more quickly Beaver County’s first responders can access information and communicate in the event of a crisis, the better job they can do of keeping our families and communities safe.”

The Beaver County Emergency Services Center is an emergency communications hub for over 450 square miles in southwestern Pennsylvania, serving approximately 185,000 residents. In the event of an emergency, like the floods that hit Aliquippa last July, these system upgrades will help Beaver County Emergency Services better coordinate county-wide resources to help the most hard-hit areas.

Ninety-five percent of the fire departments’ communications systems have already been updated, which has improved radio interoperability and firefighters’ ability to communicate via radio when out in the field. The Beaver County Emergency Services Center is now moving onto upgrading the police departments’ radio infrastructure to ensure that police on foot patrol can communicate as effectively on their handheld radios as they can from their patrol car radios.

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