LINKS:
Background Latest Update
"An Interesting Sequence of Events"
"All of Our Eggs In One Basket?"
The"Paper" Trail The FOIA Documents
Firefighters Killed LEOs Killed
A New, $1,000,000 Burden On Townships?Background Latest Update
"An Interesting Sequence of Events"
"All of Our Eggs In One Basket?"
The"Paper" Trail The FOIA Documents
Firefighters Killed LEOs Killed
Isabella County officials are directly responsible for the fire service radio communications problems (see the summary, below). Now, it appears that the cost of the County's mistakes will be passed to the townships.
From Isabella County Administrator Margaret McAvoy
"...it was determined that as a group the fire officials want to move to a 800 MHz..." The Morning Sun 3/7/16
The word “want” is the problem with that statement from Ms. McAvoy. I doubt that any of the chiefs want to spend $50,000 - $170,000 (each) of their township’s money to fix the problems created by the County. However, the fire chiefs are desperate to regain a safe environment for their firefighters and citizens.
The horrendously expensive 800 MHz system has it's own set of weaknesses that can result in catastrophe and death of firefighters.
Pushing this horrendously expensive financial burden on the townships is wrong.
Isabella County created the radio problems when they failed to adequately prepare for the federally mandated "narrowbanding". County officals are morally obligated to fix that problem instead of forcing the townships to the very expensive State owned 800 MHz communications system.
In a document dated 8/20/13, officials estimated a total of $705,700 for township fire departments to purchase 800 MHz equipment.
Isabella County created the problem.
The County should pay for fixing it, not our townships!
HOW DID WE GET INTO THIS MESS?
Here is a summary
of how Isabella County Officials created
Greater Danger for Northwest Isabella County Residents
Read the whole story here.
Please forward the link to this page to anyone you know who lives in
Sherman Township, Coldwater Township or southwest Gilmore Township
and share it on your Facebook page.
October 4, 2011
In a staff report, then Director Christine Collom presented a document by Harold Stegman, owner of Pro Comm Inc. that warned of problems that would occur when the FCC "narrowbanding" madate took effect in January, 2013. The County had well over a year to upgrade the tower & repeater facilites to compensate for "narrowbanding", but they failed to act.
August 2012
The county officials ordered the switch to narrowband communications without adequately improving the towers/repeaters/antennas of the fire service system. Communications problems ensued, immediately.
Fall 2012-Fall 2013
County officials, expended hundreds of thousands of dollars for "digital" communications equipment without adding more towers to improve coverage. Fire & police agencies spent additional thousands of dollars on digital capable MotoTRBO radios for their vehicles and personnel.
June 2014
County officials switched police agencies to "digital" communications.
July 2014
Within a month of the switch to the County's digital system, County and municipal police agencies give up on the County digital system and decided to buy into the State owned (and managed) 800 MHz digital radio communications network. County officials assisted with writing a federal grant to provide the police with 800 MHz equipment.
Fall 2014
Even though the digital system had failed for the police, Isabella County officials initiated testing of the "digital" communications system for fire services in Isabella County. In NW Isabella County, the testing provided evidence that the digital system being tested provided worse radio coverage than the existing "analog" (no computer processing) system. Documents from Isabella County provide an estimate of $1,029,950 for the new system (fire departments and Central Dispatch, combined).
March 2015
Ignoring the dismal test results for the Nottawa-Sherman FD coverage area, and the fact that the digital system had failed for County and municipal police, Isabella County officials irresponsibly mandated the transition of fire service communications from "analog" to "digital".
This move to "digital" communications placed the Nottawa-Sherman firefighters and the people they serve in greater danger and continued to waste more taxpayer dollars.
The "Bottom Line"
The existing "analog" communication system was working well for the Nottawa-Sherman FD coverage area. The new digital system has cost the County and fire departments over a million dollars and it doesn't work as well as the "analog" system we had. Isabella County needs to fix the problems before someone gets injured or killed.
The Astounding Cost of the "Bottom Line"
If the County doesn't fix the problem, each township fire department may be faced with costs totaling well over $100,000 to remedy the situation the County created; a total of $705,700 of taxpayer money in addition to the $1,029,950 already spent for the "digital" system.
Read the whole story here.
I have emailed each of the Isabella County commissioners four times.
I have had no response from any of them. Maybe they will respond to someone else.
Please!
Your help is needed to ensure the safety of Nottawa-Sherman firefighters and the citizens we serve!
Please call or use these links to email your county commisioners or the Isabella County administrator. Express your concerns on Facebook & Twitter, write a letter to the editor of the Morning Sun, email Donald Trump, put signs up in your yard, etc.
And, remember how they treated us when it's time to elect new commissioners.
Thank You!
Frank E. Benn
Serving since 1979
Firefighter/EMT/Safety Officer
Nottawa-Sherman Fire Department
Please Note:
This Web site and nsfd.net are "owned" and operated by Frank Benn, not the Nottawa-Sherman Fire Department. The viewpoints and opinions below are not necessarily supported by all members of the Nottawa-Sherman fire department or the governing boards of Nottawa and Sherman Townships.
