County commission approves contract for communications upgrade
Marion County Commission approved a contract Jan. 18 with SBC Data Comm for $424,849 for a communications upgrade.
The county will be responsible for $30,136 of the project with the remainder coming from grant funds. The amount is a planned expense and part of the 2005 budget.
Michele Abbott-Becker, county director of emergency management and communications, said the project will include wireless upgrade, mapping software, and the ability to track cellular telephone callers.
The contract amount also included $5,000 for a five-year maintenance contract for the equipment.
Federal officials met with county and city officials Jan. 14, to determine if Marion County qualifies for disaster assistance.
FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) met with officials to get an idea of the extent of damage and cleanup caused by an ice storm earlier in the month.
Abbott-Becker said the equipment used by the county for removal of ice from county roads can continue to be added for reimbursement if the county qualifies for assistance.
More than $30 million in damage throughout the state had been reported, Abbott-Becker said.
A meeting is being planned for 1 p.m. Feb. 22 in Marion City Building basement for newly-elected officials regarding disaster preparedness.
911 statistics
Abbott-Becker said from Jan. 2 through Jan. 17, there was a total of 2,912 incoming and outgoing emergency calls. Of those calls, 1,756 were between Jan. 2 and Jan. 9, during and after the ice storm.
During 2004, there was a total of 47,780 incoming and outgoing calls. Of those, 28,275 were incoming, 11,311 were outgoing, and 5,448 of the incoming calls were from cell phones.
