Emergency response radio project gets award
A local project to forge better coordination among emergency response agencies has been lauded by a communications organization.
The Wireless Internet Institute (W2i) selected the Yuma Regional Communications Project for a first-place award during the third annual W2i Wireless Communities Best Practices Awards held Dec. 11 at the W2i Digital Cities Convention in Washington, D.C.
The project was initiated approximately four years ago by the city of Yuma Department of Information Technology Services-Telecommunications, according to a news release from the city of Yuma.
Along with the Yuma County Sheriff’s Office and other agencies within Yuma County, the joint Yuma Regional Communications System and its governing council were created using intergovernmental agreements.
The implementation of the radio system advanced radio coverage within the county and gave first responders long-needed ability to communicate among each other throughout the state of Arizona and into California and Mexico, as well.
"The radio system will provide coverage to the majority of the 5,522 square miles of Yuma County and is currently funded to expand beyond the county into other adjoining areas and into Mexico," said Greg Wilkinson, city assistant information technology services director for telecommunications.
The regional communications project groups funds together to build one system instead of several separate systems in use by different agencies. At one point there were approximately 30 radio systems in use in and around the Yuma area.
The system currently has 1,200 radio users and grows daily as other agencies join.
The project, a city-led multi-agency effort to improve radio communications and coordinate emergency response across the region, won first place in the category of Community Momentum Building, which was one of four awardable categories at this ceremony.
Yuma was one of eight finalists chosen among nominations received from all over the world, according to Noopur Jhunjhunwala, program director for the Digital Inclusion Forum of the W2i. Other finalists in this category included Houston; Minneapolis; Seoul, South Korea; and the countries of Singapore and Macedonia.
More information about W2i is available at www.w2i.com.
