OZARK, MO — Christian County Commissioners approved an $11.2 million-dollar 911 emergency communication system upgrade that will begin later this month. The project is expected to be completed within 12 to 18 months.
The decision was made at an Aug. 1 Commission meeting. Presiding Commissioner Lynn Morris says he is “pretty proud” of the decision. “This is the only thing I’ve done in my three years on County Commission that impacts 100 percent of the population.”
All surrounding counties already have the new system, according to Morris. “We have the old system,” Morris told the CCT. “That means we have areas in the county that lose connection. The new system, which we should have had at least 10 to 15 years ago, will allow all emergency agencies to communicate with highway patrol and each other simultaneously.”
Greene, Stone, Taney, Polk, Webster, and Douglas Counties all have the new system. “When the county commission looked into this originally, maybe 15 years ago, it was $3 million to install. Now, it’s 11.2 million,” Morris said, shaking his head, implying that the decision should have been made years ago.
The new communication system will include new Motorola towers and state of the art technology. Morris said he was told the technology will serve the entire growing populations needs for at least 20 years.
Recent example of the need for a new system
Recently, a stolen car chase from Branson along U.S. 65 ended up in southern Christian County. The suspect abandoned a stolen vehicle and fled into the woods on foot. Christian County Sheriff Brad Cole became the lead on the manhunt because it took place in Christian County.
Unfortunately, Sheriff Cole was forced to communicate on his cell phone while all the other agencies in the area were able to communicate directly with the highway patrol due to the new 911 system they have.
The perpetrator was caught the next morning; however, the incident underscored the dire need for our county to have the same technology as the rest of SW Missouri.
Kudos to Brad Cole, Becky Bacon, and Billy Long
Kudos to Sheriff Brad Cole, 911 Director Becky Bacon, and former Congressman Billy Long for working to make funding for the project available. “Billy Long secured $9.5 million in federal funds for the project,” Morris said, “which left less than $2 million for the rest of us to come up with.”
Thankfully, 911, which is separately funded, was able to pitch in more than the county, which allocated $706,000, Morris said. The remainder of funding was approved by county municipalities, according to population.
For example, Sparta Mayor Misty Holt said Sparta’s contribution is $30,000. Larger cities contribute more, smaller cities less. “It’s a fair system, and I’m so glad we’re all doing this for the safety of our citizens,” Holt told the CCT.