ADEMs Mobile Command Vehicle was delivered to the agency in May 2008 and since that time has deployed on multiple incidents including Hurricane Gustav evacuee support in August 2008, Mena Tornado in April of 2009, and the White River flooding of 2011.
Personnel deployed with the vehicle are ADEM Duty Officers who have been National Incident Management System (NIMS) Communications Unit Leader (COML) trained. The MCV has four Arkansas Wireless Information Network (AWIN) workstations with the standard Arkansas State Users Group (ASUG) talk groups, as well as being programmed with the Statewide County dispatch talk groups. Each workstation has docking stations for assigned Duty Officer laptops. A cache of 12 Motorola AWIN hand-held radios and two six-pack Motorola conditioner/chargers are assigned to the MCV for use by responders if needed.
The MCV is equipped with an ACU 1000, connecting two AWIN radios with ASUG and Statewide County talk groups with four VHF Motorola radios and two UHF Motorola radios that can be programmed at the scene. This enables patching between the AWIN system and local channels as the need arises. Different local frequencies can also be patched together with minimum on-site radio programming. The ACU 1000 is also capable of patching a conventional telephone line if available to radio users in the field.
The MCV internet connection is provided by a TracStar self-aligning satellite dish with service provided by Ground Control Systems and includes ten days of usage per month with a flat rate per use after that. Laptop workstations used in the MCV are connected wirelessly, giving a certain amount of mobility within the vehicle.