Madison Police EOC provides multiple uses
The entire command center can be utilized for many different purposes. (RECORD PHOTO/ALDO AMATO)
By Aldo Amato
Staff Reporter
MADISON — The Emergency Operations Center (EOC) at the Madison Police Department has become a vital resource just two years in existence.
The EOC, located on the upper level of the Madison Police Department building, features the latest in technology to keep officers and departments up to speed on the latest weather and non-weather emergencies while doubling as a training room.
“It serves plenty of purposes,” Lt. Wayne Kamus said. “We can use it for all types of things and we are not the only people that utilize it. Multiple agencies from around the area are able to come here and use this facility for training or in case their center is down.”
Madison Police Chief Larry Muncey said the center coincidentally opened on a day it was needed most.
“It was April 27, 2011 when we first opened it,” he said. “I remember it like it was yesterday. We had every television screen in the room on with radar, news stations and graphics tuned into the situation. What we were able to do was run on reserve power and map out on screens and whiteboards what the community needed to do and what steps to take next.”
The center features four flat-screen televisions, a Smartboard and other resources that make emergency management much less hectic.
“This all would not have been made possible without our fantastic donors,” Muncey said. “Everything in the room is donated.”
The room doubles as a training facility for officers and community programs like the Rape Aggression Defense course. Kamus said it is much easier to hold events at the station where there more room for officers and civilians.
“Sometimes we’ll hold an event up in the room if an officer is retiring or something of that nature,” he said. “So this room is extremely beneficial in that we are not always on top of each other, cramped in a little room like we were before this was built. It’s a great room.”
