Delaware County officially unveiled its new $38 million state-of-the-art 911 radio system Friday, writes Kathleen E. Carey for the Daily Times.
The system was tested over the last summer, went online in December, and became fully operational in the new year.
The county has switched to a P25 JVC Kenwood system that includes 3,700 digital portable radios for first responders, upgraded communication towers, radio equipment, and technology at the Emergency Services center.
The new system is “awesome,” said Folcroft Deputy Police Chief Chris Eiserman, president of the Delaware County Fraternal Order of Police, Lodge 27. “The way this system works, you can operate that portable radio anywhere in Delaware County. With the old system, if I was in Radnor, I couldn’t communicate to anybody in Folcroft. It would be too scratchy. It wouldn’t get in. There were a lot of dead areas.”
Hacking was also a problem with the old system, with people breaking in for minutes at a time with vulgar language or loud music.
The system now provides 99 percent on-street portable radio coverage, secure lines for first responders with the ability to connect with other counties and state agencies.
Read how the new radios can help EMS in the county’s post-Crozer Health environment in the Daily Times.
Editor’s Note: This post was initially published on DELCO.Today in March 2026.
