Carroll officials approve purchase of 111 mobile radios for fire and EMS personnel
Carroll County firefighters and emergency medical services staff will be outfitted with new mobile radios to improve communication while on the job.
The Board of Carroll County Commissioners on Thursday unanimously approved the purchase of 111 mobile Motorola radios from Hankey’s Radio, Inc., in Frederick at a cost of $43,345. The price includes removal and installation; funds are included in the current fiscal 2024 budget.
This is not the first purchase of radios for the firefighters and emergency medical workers. In 2022, the department received a $797,227 grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to purchase 73 portable radios and 126 mobile radios.
A portable radio is similar to a walkie-talkie, in that it’s battery-powered and carried by hand, much like a smartphone. Mobile radios, on the other hand, are mounted in and physically attached to emergency apparatus. They are powered by the vehicle’s electrical system, similar to how old CB radios were mounted in personal vehicles.
Valerie Hawkins, the county’s director of the Department of Public Safety, said that though the portable radios are programmed and being used, the mobile radios have been slow to come in.
“We had significant supply chain delays receiving the mobile radios,” she said.
The portable radios have already been issued and are in service.
“Significant supply chain delays affecting many of the supplementary items necessary to accomplish the installation of the mobile radios have recently been resolved, and the mobile radios are now ready to be installed into the designated vehicles,” the county briefing paper states.