By By ANNA M. LEE Assistant Editor
Escambia County was recently awarded a grant in the amount of $15,000 to install a new closed-circuit security camera system at the county jail.
The county jail will benefit in several ways from the new camera system, including better security inside and around the jail.
The new camera system will eliminate "blind spots" inside the jail.
Also, while old cameras were black and white, the new system will include color cameras and will be capable of storing up to 30 days of digital recordings.
To update and repair the old camera security system was cost prohibitive, Sanks said, so the county opted to replace it at an expected cost of $30,000 to $35,000.
While the grant will cover half of that cost, the remainder will come from the county's designated fund for projects related to the county jail.
Once the project is introduced to the county commission, it will be bit out, and work should begin in three to four weeks, Sanks said.
The grant was awarded by Gov. Bob Riley through a program of the U.S. Department of Justice and the Alabama Department of Community Affairs will administer the grant.