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BROOKVILLE — In an effort to provide better safety for the public as well as police officers and other first responders, the Jefferson County Commissioners have entered an intergovernmental agreement for Talkgroups with the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, acting through the Pennsylvania State Police.
Tracy Zents, director of emergency services, said, “This agreement will allow multiple agencies that we dispatch to have interoperable communications on one common radio channel without putting officer safety in jeopardy.
“With this agreement the 911 center will be able to monitor the daily traffic of the state police, particularly the Punxsutawney, DuBois, Marienville and Ridgway stations, as these stations provide police coverage in our dispatch jurisdiction. We will have situation awareness if they require backup.”
The new program, Zents said, “will allow our local police agencies to be tied into the troopers without either party having to switch channels. This is extremely important when there is a high-stress incident taking place, that the officers do not have to fumble around with their radios to try to find a certain channel. They can concentrate on the incident.”
He said state police will “still have the ability to switch to our channels on a non-emergency situation.”
“We have been working with our neighboring counties so dispatchers can communicate over a secure channel to request mutual aid units and relay pertinent information about incidents that cross county borders,” Zents said. “With the touch of a button we can call a neighboring county, saving precious time. This gives us another tool in the tool box working with state police and enhances first responder safety.”
“This is something that is very long overdue,” said Scott Neal, a former director for the Bureau of Communications for the Pennsylvania State Police. “I started fighting to have this happen over 10 years ago, but had resistance from on high. I want to commend Tracy and the state police for recognizing this is a big boon for public safety. It is long overdue and I am really happy to hear it is happening.”
“It has been a long process, but I am very pleased with where we are now,” Zents said. “Speaking with the state police, they are also excited about this opportunity. Our primary goal is to keep everyone safe”
There is no cost to the county to participate in Talkgroups.
