Title
Resolution to Amend the Fiscal Year 2020 Council Approved Budget and Accept and Appropriate the FY19 State Homeland Security Program Grant ("SHSP Grant") Funding Awarded by the Virginia Department of Emergency Management to the City of Hampton, Virginia
Purpose
PURPOSE/BACKGROUND:
The Virginia Department of Emergency Management ("VDEM") has awarded the City of Hampton Police Division ("HPD") $83,000 to acquire 16 spectroscopic personal radiation detectors (“SPRD-GNs”) to expand the radiation detection and adjudication capabilities of the Virginia Peninsula as a sub-award through grant from the US Department of Homeland Security Federal Emergency Management Agency. In order to maintain regional interoperability, HPD will retain four of the devices, and distribute 12 to neighboring jurisdictions. In instances of threat detection, such as routine police patrols, new SPRD-GNs will allow officers to more efficiently detect and adjudicate radiological threats. HPD officers do not have any secondary screening equipment that would allow them to adjudicate any alarms, resulting in lengthy delays calling in another jurisdiction for assistance. Neighboring jurisdictions currently possess radiation detection equipment that is more suited for methodical investigations. The SPRD-GNs will allow jurisdictions on the peninsula to gather spectroscopy quickly and efficiently. New SPRD-GNs will have the ability to locate targets and identify the radiological item, allowing officers on scene to adjudicate it.
Discussion:
The City of Hampton (“City”) is an independent city located in Virginia. It is on the southern end of the Virginia Peninsula, bordering the Chesapeake Bay. The City has a total area of 136.2 miles; 51.8 miles of it is land and 84.4 miles of it is water, with an approximate population of 137,436. Surrounded by water, the Hampton Roads region relies heavily on underwater tunnels and bridges to connect the Virginia Peninsula with the Southside transpor...
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