The Honolulu Police Department radio system that malfunctioned earlier this month has been repaired and will be closely monitored, the City Council was told yesterday.
On Feb. 13, radio transmissions usually used between patrol officers and police dispatchers were cut off about 45 minutes islandwide when a computer card malfunctioned, police said.
But the officers and dispatchers were still able to communicate after the dispatchers immediately switched to a back-up system.
Maj. Darryl Sakai of the HPD communications division told the city’s Committee on Planning and Public Safety yesterday that public safety was not jeopardized during the breakdown.
"It really wasn’t a failure of the system, it was a glitch," said Councilman John Henry Felix, chairman of the Committee on Planning and Public Safety. "It was back in full operation within 45 minutes. We wanted to assure the public that there are backups. We’re not putting police officers and the public in harm’s way."
The multi-million dollar system experienced a similar problem in January 2000 with two faulty computer boards that disrupted communications for more than six hours. Police radio engineer Myron Yamaki yesterday said the department does have extra computer cards to replace faulty ones.
Since the system’s installation in 1998, troubleshooters have worked to fix "radio dead spots" and unresponsive emergency buttons on portable radios.
Last June, the system encountered microwave interference that disrupted communications for several days, and last September, the system was the target of a media campaign by the police union, which claimed it was inadequate and unsafe.
"We’ve had our problems with the new radio system," Felix said. "I think we worked our way through many of the glitches. Whenever you have equipment that is that sophisticated, you’re bound to have periodic breakdowns. Fortunately for us, we do have a backup.
"We continue to monitor the police communications system," Felix continued. "There were glitches at first, very serious ones. I feel that (police radio system manufacturer) Ericsson and the department have addressed them in a very positive manner and the police union has participated."
Alex Garcia, O‘ahu chairman of the State of Hawaii Organization of Police Officers, earlier said he was satisfied with the response by troubleshooters who were inside police headquarters when the Feb. 13 malfunctioned occurred.
