The City of Cape Girardeau recently took delivery of one of two new Region E Communication Vehicles.  The Regional Homeland Security Oversight Committee (RHSOC) recommended purchasing two of these vehicles at the cost of $300,000 each with DHS funding funneled through SEMA to regional areas of the state.  One vehicle will be stationed in Kennett, the other one here in Cape.  The vehicles are 2008 Chevrolet Suburban’s equipped with the latest communication technology.  Capabilities include the ability to establish a satellite link allowing a high speed access to the internet.  Through this connection, a Cisco Voice IP phone system can allow responders to communicate anywhere in the region, state or across the country.  The speed or band width also allows an onboard camera to instantly stream video from the scene to the city’s EOC or if needed back to the State EOC in Jefferson City, thus allowing real time assessment of any situation as it is occurring.  An Inter-operable radio switch also allows radios to be crossed patched, so different radio channels/frequencies can be connected; ensuring different agencies can communicate with each other.  All of these features can be directly operated from within the vehicle or moved up to 1000’ away from the vehicle using tactical fiber optic cable.  Loose equipment includes additional handheld radios, wireless phones, fax/printer/copier, auxiliary portable towers, laptops and other communications equipment.  While training at the factory in Florida last Friday, our personnel were able to establish satellite communications and send real-time video back to the City, and participated in a conference call with SEMA officials regarding the earthquake activity.  The City of Sikeston has just been approved to get a similar, yet larger, communications vehicle through the State Highway Patrol.  These vehicles will greatly enhance public safety and public works responder’s ability to establish vital communications during a large-scale or catastrophic event within our region.