The Mackinac County Emergency Services Department has requested about $45,000 in Homeland Security funding to buy new radio and pager equipment, and planners are hopeful that their request may be granted following the approval of more than $1.7 million in funding for the Upper Peninsula, said Miki DellaMoretta, the county emergency services coordinator. The announcement of the region's funding approval was made August 8.

While the county's emergency planners don't yet know how much Mackinac County will receive, "every fire department and volunteer emergency medical service crew in the county will probably get something," Mrs. DellaMoretta said. "Everyone doesn't have everything they need yet." It

is unclear at this time when the funding will be made available, she said, noting that the funding for fiscal year 2006 was just released July 1, 2006.

A new approach was taken this year in the process by which counties request funding from the State of Michigan Emergency Management Homeland Security Division. Rather than counties making individual requests, as has been done in past years, the agency has grouped counties together into regions. Mackinac County is in Region 8, which encompasses all counties in the Upper Peninsula.

"It's new that they've gone to regionalization, and we've formed a regional board that meets regularly," Mrs. Della-Moretta explained. "We're lucky in that we've always worked well together in the U.P."

One goal proposed for the region has been to provide National Weather Service radio weather coverage throughout the U.P.

The regional advisory board consists of emergency services planners from each of the 15 U.P. counties, chaired by Tim McKee of Chippewa County.