NEWARK, N.J. — The man needed help, but he didn’t want help.
Suffering from a mental illness with nowhere to go but Newark Penn Station last month, the man could have been forced by police into a squad car or an ambulance and hauled away.
Instead, authorities say, a mental health worker paired with police officers talked the man into getting the help he needed.
Valley emergency responders and the residents they serve are getting additional tools to help with timely response, in instances where seconds matter.
Last week, the East Central Emergency Network, which handles the 911 system in Columbia and Montour counties, successfully transferred its emergency call traffic into the state’s Next Generation 911 network.
With FirstNet, schools can immediately notify 911 with critical information.
The future of first responder communications is undergoing a significant transformation, thanks to the advent of Public Safety-LTE (Long Term Evolution). This technology is revolutionizing emergency services worldwide, providing a more efficient and reliable communication system for first responders.
Santa Clara County government’s largest union, Service Employees International Union Local 521, representing more than 12,000 workers, announced July 28 it had reached a tentative agreement on a labor contract providing an effective 13% in wage increases over three years.
The union represents emergency dispatchers, social workers, county hospital staff, and parks and roads workers, among others.
