Walker County Schools keeping safety a priority with new 911 emergency system

by | Oct 20, 2019 | Comm Center News

ROCK SPRING, Ga. — In an emergency situation when lives are on the line, seconds can make all the difference.

That’s why Walker County Schools recently invested state school safety funds to enhance its Incident Management System. The school system now is the first in Georgia to fully integrate dynamic mapping of each school, push-button intercom notifications and closed-circuit cameras with the county’s 911 dispatch center.

In the event of a crisis on a school campus in Walker County, dispatchers will be instantly alerted when a lockdown occurs. A lockdown also can be called for …. Read More

Dukes County Emergency Communications Steadfast Through Bad Weather

by | Oct 18, 2019 | Comm Center News

DUKES COUNTY – Due to high, damaging winds and adverse weather conditions, the Dukes County Regional Emergency Communication Center lost power in the early morning hours of Thursday, October 17th. Lights may have gone dark in the center, but dispatchers never lost the ability to communicate with the public, Police, Fire and EMS. With support from Barnstable County Sheriff’s Office and through the use of the Martha’s Vineyard Law Enforcement Council Mobile Command Unit, the Emergency 911 line for Dukes County stayed up throughout the night, fielding reports of live wires, downed trees, pole fires, flooding and more.

“We lost power, but we never lost communication.” Sheriff Ogden stated. When power went….

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Editorial: Proposal to update 911 service deserves support

by | Oct 18, 2019 | Comm Center News

The dispatchers who staff Benton County’s 911 communications center are on the front lines of the county’s first responders: If they can’t handle emergency calls in a timely fashion, it means dangerous delays in getting law officers, firefighters or paramedics to a scene.

County voters in the Nov. 5 election face a proposal to create a 911 emergency dispatch service district for most of the county, to be paid for by an increase in property taxes. The measure authorizes a rate of 65 cents per every $1,000 of assessed value, but officials have said they’ll start the district at 45 cents. At the 45-cent rate, the owner of a $350,000 home would pay an additional $157.56 each year in taxes.

The money raised, about $3.7 million a year, would pay for additional dispatchers to meet the growing call volume; some of the money would go into a reserve fund for equipment upgrades. 

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