Umatilla County meets emergency radio purchase deadline

This story was published Sat, Sep 22, 2001

By Mary Hopkin
Herald Oregon bureau

HERMISTON - Under a tight deadline to save $701,000, Umatilla and Morrow counties and the Oregon State Police agreed to allow Umatilla County to take the lead in buying emergency radios for the Chemical Stockpile Emergency Preparedness Plan.

Moments after all the parties agreed Wednesday, Umatilla County Commissioner Dennis Doherty was signing a $5 million purchase order for 450 radios. But 160 more radios still are needed, Doherty said.

Wednesday was the deadline to receive a discount on the radios, which are needed so emergency crews from across the counties and state can communicate with each other if chemical weapons stored at the Umatilla Chemical Depot leaked.

Doherty said the estimate of the number of radios needed is outdated, however. That means more radios will be needed - about 160 more at the latest count, he said.

Three types of radios are being ordered from Motorola, Doherty said - mobile units for vehicles, hand-held portables and dual-head mobiles for emergency vehicles such as ambulances and fire trucks.

Even with the discount, the prices for the radios are steep. The mobiles cost $1,937, portables are $1,851 and the dual-head mobiles cost $2,912. Without the discount, which was valid only until Wednesday, the radios each would have cost $300 more, Doherty said.

Arvid Bayer, Motorola representative, said the discount was offered so the company can meet its third quarter earnings projections.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency has set aside $7.6 million for the project. It includes not only the radios, but also improvements to the state's microwave radio system so all the emergency crews in the two counties and Benton County, Wash., can communicate without being caught in "pockets" where they can't be heard.

There is about $530,000 in contingency money built into the plan, Doherty said. But he said he wants to make sure there is enough money to finish the microwave portion of the project before buying more radios.

Doherty was adamant that no money for the project will come out of the county's general fund. All money will come from an account maintained by the Oregon State Police.

 

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