(Lee Co, Ia.)  Lee County is spending some money to make employees and the public safer.   The Lee County Board of Supervisors decided last week to buy a new security system for its buildings.  KHQA's Jarod Wells found out today this is just the first step toward modernizing security.

Employees at the South Lee County courthouse soon will have a panic button to use for emergencies. It's part of an $11,465 security system for the county.

"Its the first phase of a system that we can add cameras to and several other things as we want to," said Lee County Maintenance Director Rick Carter.  "You can add your computers to it but our first stage is going to be our panic button."

The system will consists of pagers and a central system in each building. The pagers can set off a silent alarm that will contact the closest law enforcement agency in case of trouble. This system will go into the North and South Lee County courthouses, the North Lee County office building and the North and South Lee County Department of Human Services buildings.

"I think it'll bring awareness to the situation and also allow us to provide that security in the form of a notification or alert," said Lee County Board of Supervisors Chairman Gary Folluo, "not only to bring the emergency services or police but also will alert people in the building that there is a problem area."

The system has been tested in courthouses in Springfield, Illinois and has proved to work well. The board of supervisors hopes the system will bring piece of mind to employees and the public.  Money to buy the security system came from the county's Building and Maintenance fund.  Installation of the system should start in the next month.