A more than half a million dollar grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency will help buy special “all hazard” radios for every residence and business in Marshall County. The county is the first of ten counties in Iowa to have such coverage. Sara Krog of FEMA’s Kansas City office met yesterday with Marshall County officials who’ll be distributing the radios. Marshall County Emergency Services director Deanna Neldeberg-Bachman says every citizen and every business in the county will get a voucher in the mail, and they are to submit that voucher to get their free radio from a variety of distribution centers. The radios broadcast alerts about dangerous weather and other emergencies. Officials expect to have the radios distributed by the end of April.

Radio Iowa