[Scan-DC] Winchester WV going all-digital

[Alan Henney]

The Winchester Star (Virginia)

August 27, 2016 Saturday

BYLINE: christopher earley

SECTION: NEWS

LENGTH: 528 words

The Winchester Star

WINCHESTER -- Following more than a decade of planning and studies, the city's antiquated emergency communications system is scheduled to transition next month to an all-digital system, which will, in part, work to keep first responders safe. 

The $5.2 million system upgrade will officially switch over Sept. 7, City Emergency Management Coordinator Lynn Miller said Thursday.

With the current 20-year-old analog system, Miller said replacement parts had not only become scarcer, it also lacked the necessary coverage to keep emergency units in constant communication with one another. The upgrade also brings the city up to standards imposed by the Federal Communications Commission.

As a part of the transition, crews in February installed a 150-foot monopole at the Timbrook Public Safety Center, 231 E. Piccadilly St., and later an antenna array on the water tower at the Utilities Compound, 700 Jefferson St.

The upgrade, which includes first responders' car and mobile radios, will offer better penetration into buildings and allow for interoperability with other city agencies, Miller said.

"If there's a weather event, say snow for example, those departments or agencies that are working the snow event could put all of that operation on one channel so that everything else going on doesn't interfere with it," Miller said. "And 57 school buses are now separated so nobody will be interfering with their communications."

Miller said replacement of the new radios have been underway for roughly six weeks. And because the city was able to secure refurbished equipment from another jurisdiction conducting its own upgrade, the savings was substantial.

The refurbished equipment, Miller said, includes the same warranty as its new counterparts, but at roughly half the cost per unit.

"We were very fortunate with our timing," he said.

Along with interoperability, the new system will allow for the encryption of specialized channels that handle specific sensitive information. Those channels will include talk groups, such as SWAT, criminal and special investigations units, the fire marshal, court security and negotiations.

What that means for members of the public listening to activity via scanners, Miller said, is that not much is going to change. But for those with older analog scanners, however, listening in will require an upgrade to a digital device.

"The fact of the matter is that we're trying to provide a system with versatility, depth and that provides stable, consistent communications for the community and for our responders," Miller said. "It isn't as if we have something secret out here."

Agencies and departments that will use the new system include the Winchester Police Department; Winchester Sheriff's Office; Winchester Fire and Rescue; and the city's emergency communications; emergency management; public schools; parking authority transit and parks and recreation.

More information about the city's new public safety communications, including frequently asked questions, can be found by visiting its website at https://www.winchesterva.gov/radio-project-faq.

-- Contact Christopher Earley at cearley at winchesterstar.com