A communications upgrade is on the way for Etowah County, Ala., first responders, and it’s going to require that all radios be reprogrammed.  Emergency responders met last week to talk about the upgrade, and about the availability of Homeland Security grants that might help some agencies cover part of the cost of reprogramming.  Etowah County Chief Deputy Michael Barton and Dustin Watkins, project coordinator with the sheriff’s office, talked to responders about the plans. By the end of the year, Watkins explained, the county’s first responders will have mutual-aid communications in areas that are covered by the Alabama Interoperable Radio System. Agencies Looking to Homeland Security Grants to Help with Communications Upgrade