Port Coquitlam Fire & Emergency Services

Technicians were busy at Firehall No. 1 in Port Coquitlam on the morning of February 5 installing new radio equipment in fire apparatus, as the city’s fire department became a new addition to the E-Comm Wide-Area Radio Network.

The move means all fire departments in the Tri-Cities are now operating on the same radio system for the first time (Port Moody Fire Rescue joined in 2001 and Coquitlam Fire/Rescue in 2008), allowing them to communicate more effectively with each other and local police and ambulance agencies.

“Our old system was a single-channel system and the reception was poor,” said Nick Delmonico, Chief of Port Coquitlam Fire & Emergency Services. He says the new system gives Port Coquitlam firefighters interoperability between all emergency service agencies, and in particular, with those in the neighbouring communities of Coquitlam and Port Moody.

“There are 61,000 residents of Port Coquitlam who rely on firefighters to keep them safe and to protect their property,” said Mayor Greg Moore. “Our residents can take comfort in knowing that their firefighters have the right technology at their sides.”

“The new system will make things safer for us,” added the Chief. The move also means Port Coquitlam firefighters are now communicating on the next generation radios and network—a system he says provides “clarity, multiple channels and more efficiency.” He also praised
E-Comm staff for what he calls “tremendous” support in the process. “It’s a huge undertaking to get this done.”