Valley mulls radio link with Mexico

HIDALGO — If a suspect flees across the international bridge into Reynosa, Hidalgo Police Chief Vernon Rosser’s officers don’t have a way to quickly ask for help from Mexican law enforcement on the other side of the bridge.

They have to call Mexican authorities on a cell phone or landline, a method entirely reliant on someone picking up the phone on the other side.

But ongoing drug-related violence in Mexico has accelerated plans to develop cross-border communications along the entire U.S.-Mexico border.

The U.S. State Department is leading efforts to develop a public security telecommunications network for improving border security and combating border violence. And the city of McAllen is leading a grant application that more than 40 Rio Grande Valley agencies have signed onto that would connect Tamaulipas’ statewide radio system into the Valley-wide network being built on this side of the border.

A radio system that allows communication between agencies on both sides of the border to offer mutual aid during emergencies or ask for assistance with minor events would be a valuable resource, Rosser said. Hidalgo is so close to Reynosa and other northern Tamaulipas cities that “when one of us breathes, the other one feels it,” he said.

“We don’t really have a specific manner in which we can contact them,” Rosser said. “There’s nothing set up, and that’s always been a weak link.”

REGIONAL RADIO

For years, first responders across the nation relied on disparate systems that weren’t compatible with each other.

That changed after Sept. 11, 2001, when communications breakdowns following the terrorist attacks prompted Congress to mandate that law enforcement agencies implement interoperable communications — the ability for two or more organizations to share information in real time.

Valley officials saw the need themselves for interoperable communications when nearly two dozen agencies arrived on the scene of a propane explosion in Nuevo Progreso in April 2004. Fire departments couldn’t communicate with each other because their radios operated on different frequencies, and they were forced to use couriers to run messages between search-and-rescue crews.

“Disaster after disaster, the No. 1 issue that comes up was I couldn’t talk to them,” said Tony Peña, Hidalgo County’s emergency management coordinator. “I was sitting right next to them and I couldn’t talk to them.”

Since the Nuevo Progreso explosion, Valley cities have been building a regional radio system that allows agencies to communicate simply by turning a dial and pushing a button, Peña said. The Valley’s radio system would eventually sync into a huge statewide system made up of 23 other small networks.

Seven of the nine towers needed are in place that will allow the Valley’s first responders, hospitals, public works teams and others to communicate from Raymondville to Rio Grande City, Peña said. But each agency will have to buy the radio equipment and frequency licenses for the 800 MHz system before it’s fully built out.

More than $6 million in grant funds has been invested thus far to develop the regional radio system with limited capacity. The system could cost close to $100 million by the time it’s finished.

RADIO MEXICO

But incidents such as the Nuevo Progreso explosion, the breakout of swine flu last year and even routine police matters showed the need to incorporate Mexico into the communications system, said Pilar Rodriguez, an assistant city manager in McAllen.

“Disasters don’t respect jurisdictional boundaries,” said Rodriguez, who is leading a grant application for $2 million in U.S. Department of Homeland Security funds that would provide for interoperability capabilities with Mexico. “It doesn’t stop at the river.”

The state of Tamaulipas is supporting the endeavor, as are the Texas Department of Public Safety and federal agencies such as the U.S. Border Patrol.

The multiple technologies and multiple frequency bands that have prevented seamless communication among U.S. agencies also complicate efforts with Mexico, said Mike Simpson, a DPS assistant director.

“Anytime you have critical incidents and the responders can’t communicate, it causes confusion and ineffectiveness,” he said. “That happens on both sides of the border.”

Jared Janes covers Hidalgo County government, Edinburg and general assignments for The Monitor. He can be reached at (956) 683-4424.