Pike County Connects 12 Agencies with Icom Systems

The Pike County Sheriff’s, EMS and Fire departments needed a reliable communications system that would expand coverage across the county’s difficult terrain and enable first responders to communicate interdepartmentally. The new system designed by Icom America Systems (IAS) connects 12 local agencies and provides reliable coverage countywide, allowing Pike County agencies to quickly and efficiently respond during emergencies and natural disasters.

Unreliable System Poses Major Risk to Public Safety

Located in west central Illinois, Pike County is bounded on the east by the Illinois River and on the west by the Mississippi River. Steep bluffs rise up from each river to a highlands region typified by rolling hills, wooded areas and bountiful farmland. Primarily an agricultural area, the 849 square miles that comprise Pike County teem with natural resources and wildlife.

Like most public safety agencies, the Pike County Sheriff’s, EMS and Fire departments use two-way radio for dispatch and everyday communication, as well as to communicate with other local, state and federal agencies during large interagency efforts. In the case of natural disasters like the recent Midwest flooding and search and rescue missions for missing hikers and hunters, the reliability of the agencies’ radio communications is essential to a quick and efficient response.

The problem was that the Pike County Sheriff’s, EMS and Fire departments were using a collection of disparate radio systems that couldn’t talk to one another. The assortment of different systems prohibited communication between responders from different agencies, seriously complicating large response efforts.

“Icom was willing to come in and hear what we wanted in a system, and they offer great bang for the buck.”– Chief Larry Bradshaw, Griggsville (Ill.) Fire Department

Read all about the new Icom America System used in Pike County (pdf)