HANCOCK COUNTY — County officials say the purchase of almost $3 million dollars in new handheld and vehicle radios is helping first responders stay connected and better equipped for the future.
From 2019 to 2024, Hancock County has secured funding to get $2.97 million dollars in new Motorola digital handheld radios for public safety. The significance of this purchase can be seen in smaller, rural departments like Shirley Volunteer Fire Department.
“It’s important for a department like Shirley because, if it was up to us, there’s no way that we could really get these things on our own because of the funding,” Shirley Fire Assistant Chief Josh Willis said. “It alleviates the burden on us and other smaller departments within the county. It benefits everyone. It benefits the county, benefits the citizens of the town and the county, us being able to communicate with dispatch with greater distance and reliability.”
County Commissioner Bill Spalding, who has been a member of the Indiana State Police for over 30 years, acknowledges the importance of radio communication.
“Everybody’s on the same sheet of music,” Spalding said. “Everybody’s using the same piece of equipment, and then the thing I think that hit home with us is now we’re going to have a public safety component that will be able to take these radios and upgrade them and save tax dollar monies and provide just again the best communication public safety can have, not only within our county but within our region.”
Jeannine Gray, county council, represents the area including Shirley and other rural communities and was also pleased the money has been used to help keep first responders connected.
“Public safety is always important,” Gray said. “As fast as our county is growing, we really, really need to make sure that our public safety – which would include fire, police, EMS – have top-of-the-line tools to be able to work with and communicate with.”
The slew of new radios are being maintained and programmed in-house at the Hancock County 911 center.
“By centralizing the procurement process, the programming, and the maintenance of all these new radios, it saves money in the long run,” 911 Director John Jokantas said. “Smaller departments aren’t able to keep up with technology. They have other priorities and budget constraints. Giving our departments these radios increases interoperability and allows us to quickly update and program them, as well as streamline the addition of any accessories and equipment to go with them.”
Jokantas said this purchase brings all the departments into alignment with one another. The benefit of having all the fire departments carry the same handheld radio enhances safety for responders and the community.
“That’s ultimately what this is all about,” he said. “Giving our first responders the best tools to do their job, so they can serve our community.”
