Gone is the old paper wall map of Saratoga County.
In its place in the new Saratoga County 9-1-1 communications center are eight computer workstations, each with multiple terminals and the ability to bring up a computer-generated map of anywhere in the area.
Using a $1.8 million state grant, Saratoga County has overhauled the 9-1-1 center in the jail complex on County Farm Road in Ballston Spa. The old communications center was located in the center of the Saratoga County jail — half of it upstairs, half downstairs. The old facility didn’t even have a window and, because of the center’s central location, communications officers were expected to unlock doors for visitors or other sheriff’s deputies.
The new center looks more like something out of science fiction than anything else. Each of the eight workstations has four computer monitors: to field incoming calls, gather and generate information about the caller and the incident, and coordinate with other law enforcement agencies and emergency personnel.
All 9-1-1 calls made from landlines in most of Saratoga County started going to the Saratoga County Sheriff’s Office on the morning of April 4. The center is expected to handle all cellphone calls in the near future.
The transition has been great, said Desk Sgt. Steve Gordon, a shift supervisor. `Between the training we received before the changeover and the support we’re receiving now, it’s been seamless.`
Gordon said that if there has been an increase in call volume since the new system was put in place, he wouldn’t have noticed, `because we’re so much more efficient than before.`
There are 26 communications officers working in three shifts, 24 hours a day.
`It’s those 26 people,` Saratoga County Sheriff James Bowen said. `They are the ones that make it happen.`
Under the old system, 9-1-1 calls from landlines in most of the county alternated from the State Police in Wilton and the county. But only the county dispatched fire and ambulance calls, so the majority of 9-1-1 callers who got the State Police ended up getting transferred to the county anyway.
`Now one person handles it; they only have to answer one set of questions,` Undersheriff Michael Woodcock said. `There is more continuity.`
When a 9-1-1 call comes in, explained Gordon, the caller’s address comes up on one screen. On another, it shows which police agency, ambulance corps and fire department serves that area. A third screen displays a map of the area the call was made from.
`The mapping plays a big part for ` I would say ` 70 percent of our calls,` said Gordon. `Especially with Saratoga Springs in the summertime ` with the influx of people from out of the area, the mapping will be extremely helpful.`
Gordon also said the mapping assists with emergency services personnel who, though they service Saratoga County, are often hired from outside of the county.
The shift supervisor also monitors a program called Locater. Locater is a Web-based poster-creation program that provides law enforcement agencies with access to create and distribute their own posters to include missing children, missing adults, AMBER Alert, wanted, crime alert, and other additional titles. The program allows agencies to distribute posters electronically and transmit the information to other agencies, media outlets, and the general public via e-mail distribution.
The same with general information. The way the system is now, a shift supervisor has the option of communicating with other agencies and the public via phone, radio or e-mail.
`Basically, we have a three-fold system as to how fast and how far you want to disseminate information,` said Gordon.
Bowen said it will take until at least June for all cellular emergency 9-1-1 calls in the county, even those made in places like Saratoga Springs that have their own dispatchers, to get forwarded to the county.
`The number of landline calls is going down,` Bowen said. `Everything is going wireless, and people are dumping their regular phone.`
The county currently receives 45,000 to 50,000 9-1-1 calls a year, according to Bowen, and he said he expects that number to increase by 40 to 60 percent once wireless calls start rolling in. That number does includes multiple calls on the same incident, however.
Gordon said there are 12 incoming 9-1-1 lines. With the new equipment, if Saratoga County gets overwhelmed by a major incident or a number of emergencies at one time, the calls will roll through to the Warren County Sheriff’s Office in Lake George. When Warren County is overwhelmed, the calls go to the Washington County Sheriff’s Office in Fort Edward. If Washington County is overwhelmed, the calls go to Saratoga.
The improved 9-1-1 center has had some ancillary benefits, as well. Because communications officers are no longer in the `reception area` of the correctional facility, the county has hired 10 new corrections officers to handle doorman duties now that the communications workers have moved out. There are also four additional communications positions.“