CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (WVIR) – Inside the Charlottesville-UVA-Albemarle Emergency Communications Center, every call tells a story — but now, one new team member is helping make sure those stories do not end in crisis.
.
Today at the APCO AI Summit, APCO International announced a new partnership with the Industry Council for Emergency Response Technologies (iCERT) to launch a new program to promote the responsible implementation of artificial intelligence (AI) in emergency response and public safety communications systems. The collaboration will bring together APCO’s membership and iCERT’s technology partners to drive innovation, address challenges and strengthen the systems that protect our communities every day.
The Department of Homeland Security’s Science and Technology Directorate has established a new laboratory to ensure Next Generation 911 systems work seamlessly across jurisdictions and technology providers, Federal News Network reported. The initiative aims to prevent communication breakdowns as states and localities transition from analog infrastructure to modern, internet protocol-based emergency networks.
The dispatch center that handles 911 and other emergency calls in Berkeley hit a low point of staffing this year, at one point running on just a third of the dispatchers it is supposed to have, according to a city report.
Chief Joel Hallstrom braced for a leap of faith.
Since 2019, North Park Fire Protection District depended on Mercyhealth’s Rockcom: the nonprofit’s system dispatched first responders after receiving calls from 911 centers around Winnebago County.
“There’s a bit of a disconnect when the 911 centers have to make a phone call to our dispatch when we were at Rockcom,” said Hallstrom.
Published 4:30 pm Wednesday, October 8, 2025
Effective Oct. 1, the new Farmville-Prince Edward Emergency Communication Center began dispatching all 911 calls for fire, EMS and law enforcement for the town of Farmville, Prince Edward County, Longwood University and Hampden-Sydney College.
