Pima County, Ariz. (May 7, 2012) – Because of the high risk of wildfire in southeastern Arizona, including Pima County, the Arizona State Forestry Division is restricting campfires on state land beginning at 8 a.m. May 7, 2012 and continuing until further notice. The restrictions bar the use of charcoal-burning devices and the use of acetylene and other torches.

They also prohibit smoking outdoors. Anyone who smokes must remain inside a vehicle or a building, or a developed campground area that has been cleared of all flammable material. The restrictions also prohibit use of fireworks. For a complete list, go to www.firerestrictions.us/az

The restrictions were ordered because of increasing fire danger and wildfire activity in southeastern Arizona, including Pima County. They include all Arizona State Trust Lands and Arizona Department of Transportation Lands and these Arizona State Parks:

•  Catalina State Park in Pima County

• Arivaca Lake and Land in Pima County
• Santa Rita Wildlife Area in Pima County
• Three Points Shooting Range in Pima County
• Tucson Mountain Wildlife Area in Pima County

• Kartchner Caverns State Park in Cochise County

• Roper Lake State Park in Graham County
• Picacho State Park in Pinal County
• Patagonia State Park in Santa Cruz County
• Sonoita Creek State Natural Area in Santa Cruz County
• San Rafael State Natural Area in Santa Cruz County

Pima County, Ariz. (March 29, 2012) – Now there’s an interactive website just for kids that helps them learn about air, water, soil, resource conservation and climate change – and why it’s important for them to learn how to take good care of planet Earth.

The Eco Kids Corner website was developed by Pima County’s Department of Environmental Quality and a student intern from the University of Arizona’s College of Public Health to engage children in learning about the natural world and their role in it. Here’s the link: http://www.cleanair.pima.gov/ .

Not only can they learn fun facts, like how old the Earth is and what air is made of, but they can write poems, guess the answers to science questions, learn why recycling really matters, take a look at the hydrologic cycle and find out about pedology. That’s the study of soil.

The colorful website provides links to other activity-based sites for kids from agencies such as the Environmental Protection Agency and the Centers for Disease Control.

The site also provides links to the local zoo, museums, the Sonoran Desert Kids Club and other venues that offer educational programs and materials for children.

The site includes resources for teachers and inspiration for science fair projects, too.

A special program to introduce the website is set for  Saturday, April 7, at 11 a.m. at the Murphy-Wilmot Branch Public Library, 530 N. Wilmot Road, during the library’s monthly Science Saturday event.

Pima County, Ariz. (Feb. 29, 2012) – Pima County’s Office of Emergency Management and Homeland Security is the host of a workshop in Tucson Friday, March 2, aimed at coordinating preparedness training activities in Southern Arizona.

The event, which is not open to the public, will result in the development of a multi-year training exercise and event plan for emergency services and homeland security operations in Yuma, Santa Cruz, Cochise and Pima counties.

The counties work with each other to coordinate their incident command training, hazardous materials response and decontamination training, counterterrorism training and other activities related to homeland security and mass disaster preparation.

Representatives of military and federal agencies, utilities, private sector services and suppliers, tribal agencies, hospitals and volunteer organizations active in disaster response will take part in the “Partnership for Preparedness” workshop.

The event runs from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Tucson Electric Power headquarters, 88 E. Broadway Blvd.

Among the types of events that are conducted by the counties is a full-scale, rapid-response training exercise set for April 18. In this exercise, Pima County responders will be deployed to Santa Cruz County to take part in a mock anti-terror event.

Pima County, Ariz. (Dec. 16, 2011) – The Pima County Sheriff’s Department is helping to keep you from becoming a crime victim this holiday season.

Here’s some good advice from Sgt. James Ogden:

Carry your driver’s license or other identification and shop during daylight hours when you can.

Don’t carry large amounts of cash. Pay with a debit or credit card or personal check instead.

Don’t overload yourself with shopping bags and packages. Clear visibility and freedom of motion will help you avoid a mishap.

Pay attention to your surroundings. Don’t get so distracted by shopping or other holiday activities that you don’t see someone heading your way aiming for your packages or your purse.

Be wary and aware of strangers who approach you for any reason. At this time of year, con artists may try to distract you as they try to take your money or your belongings.

Don’t wear expensive jewelry while you’re out shopping and dress casually and comfortably.

Watch out for fake charities that try to take your money at this time of year. The Federal Trade Commission warns that charity scammers are on the job on the phone and aiming for your money. Don’t give to any charity unless you first verify it is legitimate.

Ignore unsolicited email offering you a good deal. Spam scams are so prevalent they may appear indistinguishable from legitimate advertisers. Don’t take this risk.

Is that child knocking at your door really seeking donations to a charity – or is he working for a scam artist? Door-to-door scam artists step up their activity during the Christmas season knowing people may be more inclined to say yes at this time of year. Many so-called charities are fakes.

Don’t be a target of people who say they can sell you a star for Christmas. You can’t name a star or buy a star.

Stars aren’t for sale. Stars are only named by the International Astronomical Union. Any company or individual claiming they can name a star after you for a fee and say they will place the name in their star registry is operating a scam.

Pima County, Ariz. – In 2008, a 25-year-old man led police and sheriff’s deputies on a zig-zag car chase that began on the northwest side of Tucson and ended on Mount Lemmon, with one Tucson Police officer fatally wounded and two Pima County Sheriff’s deputies injured.

The two deputies survived. Throughout that deadly chase, police and deputies weren’t able to talk to each other on the same radio frequency.

The incident highlighted a serious flaw in emergency communications that is now being corrected.

The radio communications systems throughout much of Pima County are on different radio frequency bands and use different proprietary technologies.

They don’t provide for live, simultaneous communication among law enforcement, fire agencies and medical first responders.

The good news for county residents is that these outdated systems will be old news by late 2013, when the county’s new public safety Wireless Integrated Network, funded by bonds approved by voters in 2004, is expected to begin operation.

The new Pima County Wireless Integrated Network (PCWIN) system will enable 30 fire and law enforcement agencies from Tucson to Ajo, from Sahuarita to Mount Lemmon, and from the Rincon Valley to Avra Valley, to talk to each other by radio in real time on a single system, regardless of their jurisdiction boundaries.

Capt. Paul Wilson of the Pima County Sheriff’s Department is the wireless radio project’s administrator for Pima County. The Sheriff’s Department is a key partner in the project.

“It is imperative that first responders be able to communicate directly with one another to coordinate public safety services to minimize risk from events like the 2008 chase,” Capt. Wilson has said.

Today, most local fire and police agencies must communicate with each other during an incident by radioing their own dispatchers, who then relay the information to the other agency’s dispatchers. Those dispatchers radio their first responders. And then the first responders relay their message back the same way.  It’s a cumbersome process.

Pima County’s new, shared wireless communications system will put more than 7,000 new radios into service.

In the aftermath of the terrorist attacks in New York City and at the Pentagon in September 2001, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security recommended the use of these “shared systems” to provide what it calls an “interoperability continuum” and to prevent “single points of failure.”

The complex project under way now in Pima County requires cooperation from diverse entities, including the Tohono O’odham Nation, Arizona State Land Department, U.S. Forest Service, U.S. Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Arizona Department of Public Safety, as well as local police and fire agencies throughout Pima County.

The new wireless radio system will incorporate a number of new communications sites now being placed throughout the county.

Several of the new radio towers are already up. The county hired contractors who specialize in communications site work so that some of the towers could go up at the same time and the county could keep to its construction schedule.

Towers are up at the Golder Ranch Fire Station #370, Rincon Valley Fire District Station #1 and at the Oro Valley Town government complex.

Also, a new tower has gone up at Child’s Mountain in Ajo and contracts for improvements at five sites owned by the city of Tucson have been awarded.

Although most of the project is funded by county bonds, $10.5 million in federal monies have been provided to pay for some of the equipment for the project.

When Pima County voters approved the Public Safety bond issue in 2004, they also approved funding for new public safety 9-1-1 dispatch facilities.

Two sites will be renovated to provide enhanced dispatch services for the City of Tucson and unincorporated Pima County.

A new county facility, the Pima Emergency Communications and Operations Center, will be built at 3434 E. 22^nd St, near Alvernon Way. A 125-foot radio tower with antennas and microwave dishes are part of this project.

The City of Tucson’s existing emergency dispatch center at the Thomas O. Price Service Center at Park Avenue and Ajo Way will be renovated and upgraded as part of the project.

Each site will act as a 9-1-1 dispatch backup facility for the other.

The communications tower to be erected at the Pima County facility in Tucson will be fitted with multiple antennas to support the emergency services communications provided by the Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Service, in support of the Pima County Emergency Operations Center.

These volunteer radio operators provide their skills within a protocol created by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the Federal Communications Commission.

They’re trained to work within the guidelines of the National Incident Management System. And their skills enable local, state and federal government agencies to work together with the private sector during major incidents, such as floods. They’re also the only amateur radio operators authorized to transmit, should the President of the United States declare an emergency and invoke the War Powers Act.

The new countywide radio communications system is also requiring some construction on University of Arizona-owned land on Tumamoc Hill on the city’s west side, near St. Mary’s Road. It’s a popular hiking spot.

And although hiking access to the hill is already restricted during the hours of 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., while scientific research is under way, some people still walk the hill during those times.

Now, with the added presence of construction vehicles, access to the hill will be restricted at all times to hikers on specific weekdays while a new radio tower is erected. A sign at the base of the hill and a calendar on the PCWIN website will warn hikers when the hill will be closed to them.

Check the PCWIN web site for updates on access to the hill at www.bonds.pima.gov/wireless/index.html. Then, click on the “Project Updates” link.