2008 Woodie Awards
Police obtain radios for crises
Allan Lewis
Issue date: 9/20/07 Section: News
SIUE Police have been equipped with six new emergency radios to communicate with multiple state agencies in the event of a crisis.
The University is one of 70 in Illinois to receive the Starcom 21 800 MHz Radio system. The new system is part of a $624,000 donation funded by the Illinois Terrorism Task Force and the system's developer, Motorola.
"We are extremely gracious for the donation," SIUE Police Captain Tony Bennett said. "The technology is something we are grateful for."
The radio system has been established to reach up to 98 percent of Illinois, allowing law enforcement to communicate with emergency management contacts throughout the state, as well as fire and public health agencies.
"The radios we received necessitate us communication with other agencies," Bennett said. "They also allow us better communication with Edwardsville and Glen Carbon."
According to Bennett, this new technology is strictly for emergency use.
"The frequencies are set up for major instances and when we activate procedures the radios will come into play."
The initiation of the Starcom system is the third phase of Governor Blagojevich's campus security initiative.
The first phase was the creation of a task force made up, in part, of representatives from universities, community colleges, proprietary institutions, state police and Illinois Campus Law Enforcement Administrators.
Second in the initiative was appointing Illinois Board of Higher Education and Illinois Campus Law Enforcement Administrators to the Illinois Terrorism Task Force.
The third part of the initiative comes just months after SIUE Police arrested former student Olutosin O. Oduwole after finding his vehicle parked on North University Drive with a threatening note detailing a "murderous rampage" on a campus, similar to the one at Virginia Tech, which sparked the campus security initiative.
"The system is something we will implement only under emergency circumstances," Bennett said. "If need arises, the system will allow us to bridge communication gaps and help reach all state entities quickly in case of emergency."
The University is one of 70 in Illinois to receive the Starcom 21 800 MHz Radio system. The new system is part of a $624,000 donation funded by the Illinois Terrorism Task Force and the system's developer, Motorola.
"We are extremely gracious for the donation," SIUE Police Captain Tony Bennett said. "The technology is something we are grateful for."
The radio system has been established to reach up to 98 percent of Illinois, allowing law enforcement to communicate with emergency management contacts throughout the state, as well as fire and public health agencies.
"The radios we received necessitate us communication with other agencies," Bennett said. "They also allow us better communication with Edwardsville and Glen Carbon."
According to Bennett, this new technology is strictly for emergency use.
"The frequencies are set up for major instances and when we activate procedures the radios will come into play."
The initiation of the Starcom system is the third phase of Governor Blagojevich's campus security initiative.
The first phase was the creation of a task force made up, in part, of representatives from universities, community colleges, proprietary institutions, state police and Illinois Campus Law Enforcement Administrators.
Second in the initiative was appointing Illinois Board of Higher Education and Illinois Campus Law Enforcement Administrators to the Illinois Terrorism Task Force.
The third part of the initiative comes just months after SIUE Police arrested former student Olutosin O. Oduwole after finding his vehicle parked on North University Drive with a threatening note detailing a "murderous rampage" on a campus, similar to the one at Virginia Tech, which sparked the campus security initiative.
"The system is something we will implement only under emergency circumstances," Bennett said. "If need arises, the system will allow us to bridge communication gaps and help reach all state entities quickly in case of emergency."
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