Sevier County LTR-further
A new communications system set to go into effect for local emergency officials is expected to help keep county residents and emergency service providers safe.
Perhaps as soon as the end of this month, most local departments and some city and county agencies will switch to the new UHF system. The move will make communications across the county virtually uniform.
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Law enforcement officials, led by the Sevier County Sheriff's Department, have been working for years to prepare for the move.
"We didn't know if this was eventually going to happen, but we've been planning for it and we're very happy that it finally is," Sheriff Ron Seals said.
While other non-UHF systems are available, Seals said the one chosen for local officials will serve them best because it will have the least interference from the area's high mountains.
Seals said he hopes the system will be operational within the coming weeks. The new system has several advantages that will enable those who work to protect the citizens of the county to do their jobs better.
For instance, as the county was dealing with an outbreak of wildfires earlier this year, several fire departments expressed concerns that they had no way to communicate with others working on the blazes.
"This system will give all the departments a channel they can switch over to and talk to each other on in the event of a countywide emergency like that," Seals said.
The system will also offer direct communication with law enforcement outside the county, including the Knox County Sheriff's Department, which often lends support to the local department.
Sheriff's deputies will now also have the added safety of a "man down" button, that will alert others in the event they are injured on a call or find themselves in a situation where they need assistance but cannot get on the radio to call for it.
A further advantage of the new system is it will allow for the installation of global positioning system locators in deputies' vehicles. That will enable dispatchers to track where each car is at all times and may help protect deputies, Seals said.
"This system will keep everybody completely safe when they're operating out there," Seals said.
Still, with all the advantages of the system, Seals concedes there are some negatives. For instance, Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge have opted not to be part of the system for now. Also, it's unknown how the new system will work with the scanners some people use in their homes. Seals says analog scanners will definitely not work as local departments switch to an all-digital network in the near future.
"It has its good points and it has its bad points, but the pluses definitely outnumber the negatives," Seals said.
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dhodges@themountainpress.com
©The Mountain Press 2007