Since February 2025, the Richmond Ambulance Authority and the city’s Department of Emergency Communications have been locked in a struggle over who should field 911 calls for medical emergencies.
Work continues on a Joint Communications Center that will facilitate dispatchers from the Iberville Parish 911 Department and the Iberville Parish Sheriff’s Office.
The project is hailed as a major investment in the future of public safety and emergency response in Iberville Parish.
GRAND FORKS — The State Emergency Communications Center will take on 911 dispatch services for three additional counties, easing staffing and financial burdens for rural communities.
North Dakota Century Code requires the SECC to provide dispatch services to all counties with fewer than 25,000 people, because they often can’t afford services on their own, according to SECC Division Director Darin Anderson. The counties that most recently voted to transfer services are Eddy, Nelson and Sioux.
“We’re hoping for a smooth transfer,” she said. “It’s probably going to be about a seven-month process to get everything set in place to make the switch, but we should have absolutely zero disruption in any services while we are transferring over. The public probably won’t even know it’s happened.”
Scottsdale Police Department is launching a new AI-assisted system for non-emergency calls later this year. Officials say it will help dispatchers, not replace them.
“Is FirstNet a public asset?” That’s the question many people ask about this public safety network—the only broadband wireless network in the United States that was built to serve first responders first.
