The Santa Barbara City Council approved City Fire Chief Chris Mailes’s proposal to join a regional fire communications facility during its weekly meeting Tuesday.
The six council members in attendance justified the dispatch center’s $800,000 annual price tag by considering the benefit of teaming up with neighboring departments.
The communications facility will be equipped by the Santa Barbara County Fire Department. The Santa Maria Fire Department, Montecito Fire Protection District and the Carpinteria-Summerland Fire Protection District have committed to join…
Blue Mountain Fire Chief Kory Bell recalls a time firefighters had to chase down an ambulance after it passed the emergency scene they were at. They were in a dead zone and the radios police, ambulance and firefighters use, simply wouldn’t work.
Unfortunately, until recently, dead zones were a common problem in the Blue Mountain area and posted significant communication barriers during an emergency.
Thankfully, that problem has been at least partially resolved. A ribbon-cutting was held recently for the new telecommunication tower in Blue Mountain that has greatly improved radio communications in the area for first responders…
Smart phone users accidentally dialing someone by mistake is an established part of life in our hyper-connected culture.
Sometimes, though, those butt-dials end up summoning the police or the county dispatch services.
And whenever a iPhone, Android or even Apple Watch hits the market, dispatchers across the country know they’ll be receiving a new rash of these accidental 911 calls.
“I think it’s gotten worse as more technology comes out,” remarked Steven Gordon, director of emergency communications for the Saratoga County Sheriff’s Office, which handles 911 calls for most of the county’s police and fire services…
A state funded study will look at the potential for a regional public safety dispatch center. Southborough is among the five towns that will be included.
The Edward J. Collins, Jr. Center for Public Management* will study dispatch services and needs for our area. The other towns included are Westborough, Grafton, Hopkinton, Marlborough, and Hudson.
During last night’s Board of Selectmen meeting, members had some questions and concerns about what the study will assess. But, as Chair Lisa Braccio summed up, since it’s not costing the Town, it behooves them to take the step forward..
Naperville residents can now text 911 in an emergency, the city’s Public Safety Answering Point announced last month.
“While we want to emphasize that calling 911 is still the fastest, most reliable way to contact us, we know that offering texting as an option is critical in so many scenarios,” Emergency Communications Manager Jillianne Chuffo said in a news release. “We’re thankful to be able to offer texting as an option for citizens who have an emergency but aren’t able to speak — either because it’s not safe or because of a disability.” … READ MORE
Later this month, St. Louis officials will begin the process of combining the city’s police, fire and EMS emergency operations into one call center. The plan seeks to address a shortage of dispatchers in the city and long hold times for people calling 911.
St. Louis Mayor Tishuara Jones announced the plan in August. On Wednesday’s St. Louis on the Air, interim Public Safety Director Dan Isom signaled a full merger of the three communications centers could take more time.
“When the mayor went to the 911 system and the police department, we talked about October being the target date. And while we want to do it as quickly as possible, because this is an urgent need for our community, we want to make sure we do it right,” Isom told host Sarah Fenske…
Learn about current efforts to continue to protect the 4.9 GHz Band for public safety as well as recent filings, key decisions impacting these efforts, and how you can support PSSA’s initiative to protect the 4.9 GHz band for public safety.
