Emergency vehicles in Plymouth County will soon be equipped with Global Positioning Systems.

Implementing the GPS will allow the 911 communication center to pinpoint each law enforcement, ambulance or fire department vehicle's exact location when responding to a call.

(Advertisement)

Plymouth County Sheriff Van Otterloo said that will be beneficial across the board.

"I think it will allow for more rapid response to different scenes," he said. "It will provide safety to responding units and law enforcement officers who are responding to difficult situations."

Van Otterloo estimated the cost of the project at $150,000 and has applied for a $50,000 grant through the Homeland Security Emergency Management Department to help with the cost.

Although he hasn't confirmation that the county will receive the up to $50,000 grant from state Wireless E-911 Emergency Communications Carry Over Funds, he has had favorable feedback.

"I'm getting indication that our application will be seen in a favorable light," Van Otterloo said. "I think we have a pretty good shot at that $50,000."

The remainder of the cost would be paid for through the Plymouth County 911 Board, which receives revenue from county telephone surcharges. Estimated completion of the project is Nov. 1.

Van Otterloo said the GPS will make multi-agency response coordination more efficient as communication operators will know where units are, how soon they can respond and their estimated arrival time at the scene.

As part of implementing GPS, research has started to determine which areas of the county would require repeater towers to amplify the satellite signal and whether existing towers already have that capability, Van Otterloo said.

"The whole system is only as good as you have services for," he said. "We want to make sure that we try to cover at least 98 to 99 percent of all areas in the county."