Fix-it plan in works for county 911

A fix-it plan for Flathead County's outdated and spotty emergency-radio network is supposed to be ready in two months.

Area 911 officials are hoping that can happen sooner.

On Tuesday, the Flathead City-County 911 Administration Board approved hiring RCC Consultants of New Jersey for $33,500 to come up with the fix-it plan within two months.

RCC also did a study released earlier this year that outlined the county's emergency-radio network's problems.

A major function of the upcoming RCC study will be to study potential locations, designs and budgets to create a consolidated 911 center from the existing Flathead County, Kalispell, Whitefish and Columbia Falls dispatch centers.

The county has 19 fire departments, a half-dozen ambulance services, four law-enforcement agencies and several other emergency-oriented departments that rely on a radio network with outdated equipment, dead spots, spotty maintenance, and some inability to quickly process significant amounts of electronic information.

These problems increase when firefighters, law officers and others switch from vehicle radios to handheld radios.

Emergency dispatch board members voiced frustration about stalled fix-it efforts in the past, and urged that planning and follow-up work be done as quickly as possible.

"We have to deal with it because we're ethically obligated to deal with it," said board member Diane Smith.

Smith and others also said the board could be held legally liable for mishaps caused by a substandard emergency-radio system since they now have the first RCC report outlining all of its problems.

Board members also said:

. They need to quickly replace 911 director Lisa Durand, who is resigning at the end of this month because of family matters.

. The original target to create a consolidated 911 center by July will be delayed, likely until November, because of the merger planning and work that has to be done.

. Montana House Bill 27 - which recently passed the House - will have to survive the state Senate to pump an additional $350,000 annually into the Flathead 911 fix-it measures. If passed, that bill would increase a state user fee on telephones from 50 cents to $1 a phone, with the extra money distributed among Montana's 911 agencies.

Reporter John Stang may be reached at 758-4429 or by e-mail at jstang@dailyinterlake.com