CARMEL – Three new consoles have been added to the Putnam County 911 Dispatch Center increasing the number of stations to nine where calls can now be received.
Crews moved into the center located at the Bureau of Emergency Services Training and Operations Center in Carmel last week and within 72 hours wired the new consoles and installed them while dispatchers continued to receive calls for assistance.
As many as 16 individuals worked on the installation. Commissioner of Emergency Services Ken Clair commended the county’s loyal and highly trained 911 staff for its professionalism and diligence during the installation. “Our dispatchers didn’t miss a beat. Calls were answered and dispatches were made without any delay despite the number of people working nearby.”
The cost of the project was $85,000. Assistant Commissioner Robert Lipton noted “every penny was paid for by grants. The modernization didn’t cost our local taxpayers a single dime.”
Last year plans were announced to merge the county’s 911 Dispatch Center with the sheriff’s office dispatching division. The three added consoles will meet that need if and when the consolidation occurs.
In Sullivan County, a proposal to transfer the 911 emergency call operation from an independent department to that county’s sheriff’s office, has been tabled for 90 days.
Currently, emergency calls received at the Putnam County 911 center are handled by the highly professional team of dispatchers who summon fire and ambulance corps personnel as well as turn calls related to police matters over to either the sheriff’s department, Carmel, Kent, Cold Spring or Brewster Police as well as State Police.
The sheriff’s department has its own dispatchers as do Carmel and Kent Police at their respective headquarters.
Under the proposed plan, sheriff’s dispatchers would be relocated to the 911 center at the Training and Operations facility on the Donald Smith Governmental Campus in Carmel.
Sheriff Langley admitted “there will be a lot for everyone to learn,” adding that he “strongly recommended joining forces.”
Clair remains hopeful that the sheriff’s dispatchers could be located in their new home at the county’s operations center building sometime this year.
On any given day, the Putnam County 911 center answers some 200 calls regarding a myriad of issues and concerns. Some are for emergencies while others are routine that should not have been placed at the center but by contacting a local police department.
The center opened in 2005 and during its first year of operation answered 24,737 calls. Last year, its dispatchers answered more than 43,000 calls.
Two of the most hectic days in the history of the center came in 2018 when on March 2, during a snowstorm that hit the area, 1,506 calls were answered.
Cindy Jacobsen, 911 center supervisor, said, “We all thought that was a record until May 15, 2018, rolled around when in the late afternoon several tornadoes ravaged Putnam County.”
The 911 team, which Jacobsen called “Putnam’s First-First Responders,” answered 2,315 calls within eight hours.
Jacobsen reminded the public that 911 is for emergencies. “We are here to help if a person experiences chest pains or a woman is about to give birth. Report an accident or fire by calling 911 or if you observe suspicious activity in your neighborhood never hesitate to call. However, if a cat is stuck high in a tree or if a branch falls in your driveway, please don’t tie up our emergency lines. Contact your local police department by calling its non-emergency number.”
