as seen in the Tuesday, November 23, 2021, Williams – Grand Canyon News
WILLIAMS, Ariz. — To help with communication efforts for first responders, a new radio repeater has been established on Bill Williams Mountain.
The repeater was made possible through the cooperative work of High Country Fire & Rescue, Ponderosa Fire and Sherwood Forest Estates Fire District, along with the support of the Sherwood Firefighters Foundation.
“This repeater will dramatically increase emergency radio coverage which will improve efficiency and safety for our residents” said John Moede, fire chief of Sherwood Forest Estates Fire District. “Our agency will be able to have direct communication with our dispatch center, Guardian Communications.”
According to Moede, the repeater project came about because of spotty radio coverage which hampered emergency response and effectiveness.
“We have had particular problems with coverage to the north and west of Parks,” said Lee Antonides, fire chief of Ponderosa Fire District. “This repeater system provides for increased communications interoperability for all regional public safety agencies.”
High Country Fire and Rescue Fire Chief Robert Trotter agreed.
“This project is also providing the opportunity for several agencies to work on one channel if a large scale incident occurs,” he said. “The collaboration of our agencies along with the Sherwood Firefighters Foundation provided an opportunity to purchase and install the repeater system. The generous financial support of the Sherwood Firefighters Foundation allowed us to fund the project.”
Information provided by Sherwood Forest Estates Fire District