Tuned In to Trouble

Should Orange County be struck by earthquake, fire or flood in the new millennium, officials say they will be able to react faster and better than ever before thanks to a nearly $80-million emergency response system to be unveiled in December 2000.

The 800-megahertz radio network will link all police, fire and public works agencies in the county to one radio frequency and give them the ability to directly communicate with one another--something they now can’t do.

Officials faced heavy criticism in 1993 when the county’s existing 400-megahertz system almost broke down during the devastating Laguna Beach fires. There have been complaints for years that the 26-year-old system is unreliable. It doesn’t allow police to communicate by radio to firefighters, so they must relay messages through dispatch centers.

“The radio system we are operating on has lasted twice its estimated life,” said La Habra Police Chief Steven H. Stavely. “It’s being held together with chewing gum, bailing wire and tremendous effort on behalf of our communication folks at the sheriff’s office.”

Costa Mesa City Manager Allan L. Roeder said the project has been in the works--in many shapes and forms--since 1986. But there have been many delays, including the county’s bankruptcy in 1994. Then there was the daunting task of getting all of the cities in the county to agree on a single system.

“This project has been on the brink of disaster more times than you can count,” Roeder said. “It is the largest cooperative construction project involving all of the cities in the county’s history.”

The County Board of Supervisors approved their portion of the funding in December 1995. But at the time, cities had misgivings about the funding plan. The county will contribute $27.4 million for the system while cities would combine to pay a total of $49.5 million. The amount each city would pay would depend on the number of emergency radios it requires and on its estimated population in 2004.

“Right now, police can’t talk to fire and fire can’t talk to public works,” Stavely added. “But in the future, they can.”

Officials said the new system will help agencies respond more quickly and efficiently to major incidents and help avoid costly miscommunication.

The system will be located in the county’s Emergency Operations Center, which opened five years ago atop Loma Ridge. All of the county’s emergency communications are housed at the center, including the sheriff’s 911 dispatch center and a radio network linking hospitals in the county.

“This radio system is the most modern, most technically advanced, multi-owner, multi-user radio system ever used in the world,” Stavely said. “Any agency that goes to 800 megahertz in the future, we’ll be able to talk to. It can be done literally through the push of a button.”

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Sending a Strong Signal

Scheduled to be phased in over the next two years, Orange County’s 800-megahertz radio system will allow police, fire and public works departments to communicate with one another during emergencies and more than quadruple the channels available to the agencies.

COMPARING OLD AND NEW SYSTEMS

* 400 MHz Individual radio systems

No direct communication between agencies in field

No communications among dispatchers (except by telephone)

* 800 MHz Integrated Radio System

Dispatchers communicate with any agency in the field

Agencies in field communicate with any dispatcher

*

Making Waves

While the 400-megahertz signal is clearer and less likely to break up, the 800-megahertz system is stronger and more likely to circumvent obstacles.

Graphics reporting by BRADY MacDONALD / Los Angeles Times