Kanawha commission approves communication, tower purchases

CHARLESTON, W.Va. — The Kanawha County Commission last week approved multiple projects related to communication tools used by first responders, including around $3 million in radio equipment.

In a vote Kanawha County Commission President Kent Carper described as maintenance, the commission approved purchasing a new tower in the Knollwood community, repairing a Cross Lanes structure and purchasing a site for a possible tower also in the Cross Lanes community. The projects are worth $610,000 combined.

Carper explained the National Weather Service previously owned the Knollwood tower, and the tower will be a primary backup tower.

“In a pandemic, you have to be able to talk on the radio,” he said, referencing the coronavirus pandemic. “The Kanawha County Commission supports the largest individual communications system of any government in the state other than the state. We have to do that. That is something that we’ve always done.”

“We have to maintain the emergency communication system,” Carper added.

The $3 million equipment purchase will benefit volunteer fire departments, the Kanawha County Sheriff’s Department and paramedics.

Carper said with Kanawha County leading the state in coronavirus cases, the approval was made at an important time.

“Things wear out. Computers, radios and console systems have to be constantly upgraded,” he said.