DeKalb County Sheriff’s Office, first responders receive grant for new communications tower

DEKALB COUNTY, Ala. (WAFF) - After five decades, an outdated communications tower at the DeKalb Sheriff’s Office will soon be replaced thanks to half a million dollars in grant funding.

During emergencies, first responders and law enforcement are the first ones to respond and it all comes through a tower, which was aging and unreliable.

DeKalb County Sheriff Nick Welden told 48 News, it’s been a challenge at times.

“There have been times where parts of the system have gone down in the middle of the night, and we are only able to use a certain tower in the county, which will limit the capability of the town on different ends,” said Sheriff Welden.

With joint efforts from agencies in the county, the sheriff’s office was awarded, a $500 Homeland Security Emergency Operation Center Expansion grant.

The new communications tower will be replaced, which Sheriff Welden said will cut down on response times for first responders and make them more competitive with surrounding agencies.

“The overall goal of this grant is not only are we able to work on the same page and share information, but we can also go beyond DeKalb County into Jackson, Cherokee, and Etowah,” said Sheriff Welden.

Work on the new communications center is expected to begin early next year.

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