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County highlights EOC and 911 upgrades, new ambulances and regional communications integration
Summary
Chairman described upgrades to the Emergency Operations Center and 911 communications, integration of an active school threat alert into rapid SOS mapping, acquisition/authorization of two ambulances, and a Verizon contract to host a wireless site on Grays Mountain.
Unidentified Speaker, the county chairman, detailed a series of emergency‑services and communications upgrades in the State of the County address. He said the Emergency Operations Center (EOC) on Global Drive received new furniture, audiovisual upgrades and six large monitors to support monitoring of weather and emergency information. The 911 communications center was relocated into the EOC headquarters building with a separate entrance and expanded from two workstations to four (one reserved for future growth). The chairman said Motorola CallWorks was upgraded with new service, monitors and computers.
The address reported that dispatch now monitors about 180 cameras 24 hours a day, and Technology & Media Services approved 44 additional cameras to bring the countywide surveillance system to more than 200 cameras; the chairman said several counties have come to observe Lincoln County’s 911 center.
On vehicles and equipment, the chairman said EMS received a new ambulance costing $220,000 (assigned to Station 11 on Highway 220 West) funded from the local special purpose sales tax fund referenced in the address; the board also authorized a second ambulance costing $191,268 expected to arrive later in the month and to be assigned to EMS headquarters on Global Drive. The chairman asked the board to work during the budget session to fund a full‑time firefighter position to work with volunteer departments and urged cross‑training EMS personnel to include firefighter certification.
The chairman reported the Office of Emergency Services coordinated a board‑approved contract with Verizon Wireless to install and operate a Tier‑1 wireless site on the county’s Grays Mountain tower; the contract is projected in the address to gross about $30,000 a year for 25 years in addition to nearly $100,000 per year from existing contracts.
He also described grant activity tied to emergency management: applications and awards for preparedness and mitigation grants were noted, and FEMA awards totaling about $3.22 million were reported to fund Hurricane Helene debris cleanup. The chairman emphasized operational continuity, saying the 911 move was completed “without missing a single phone call or any radio traffic.”
The chairman’s remarks in this topic area were administrative and descriptive; the transcript does not record an independent technical assessment or separate public comment questioning the upgrades during the address.
The chairman’s name was not stated in the transcript; the article attributes quotes and claims to "Unidentified Speaker, the county chairman."
