Statement
County Executive Marc Elrich Statement on Public Safety Communication
For Immediate Release: Thursday 20 June
I am committed to doing everything possible to ensure that the people of Montgomery County are safe. Every action that I have taken to improve the public safety communication system over the last few months has been done with a sense of urgency and concern for public safety. I inherited a County public safety communications system that is over 20 years old and long overdue for an upgrade. My administration has been working to implement a new system that was planned by the previous administration and scheduled to be fully operational by December 2020. The consideration of alternate sites for two of the planned towers in no way jeopardizes the public safety system today. In fact, my administration has taken significant steps to strengthen the existing system and improve its stability so that people are safe. We have improved hardware and will be adding redundant hardware and upgraded software to enhance the current system. These enhancements were not planned prior to my taking office. We continue to vigorously test contingency plans for minor and major scenarios. These improvements, as well as the extra training and preparation that our public safety personnel instituted, have better prepared us to address emergency situations. As a result of these efforts, the County is in a better place. However, we will continue to engage the community and do what is needed to ensure that the people of this County are safe from now until the new system is completed in 2020. To be clear, I will never compromise the safety of the people of Montgomery County.
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Release ID: 19-010