By Brady Ratzlaff

County emergency responders now use province-wide radio system

Jul 21, 2018 | 6:00 AM

County of Grande Prairie emergency services have implemented the Alberta First Responders Radio Communications System (AFRRCS).

Stuart Rempel, Superintendent of Enforcement Services for the County, says the province has been working on this since 2002, with the County recently approved to join the system.

“The bill was concluded, and they went live on July 1, 2018. So, we have been working on signing on to it and just finished our last month. We are fully on board now.”

Rempel adds the process to be included in the radio network is roughly 18 to 24 months and the only thing a municipality or person has to pay for is the radios. The radios have to be certified by the government of Alberta.

The system gives numerous emergency personnel the ability to be in contact with anyone around the province at the touch of a button.

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Rempel says the new radio network has a number of benefits including the province paying to build and upkeep the infrastructure.

“The old system was based on radio waves and so it was pretty primitive, basically 60-year-old technology. The other benefit is now we are able to talk to everybody.”

The City started using the radio system in late spring.