Local & State Headlines

City ups number of dispatchers

• New dispatchers shold ease the burden of increased call volume, officials say.

J.D. Sumner

ALBANY — Albany’s E-911 center just got a little more crowded with the addition of eight new dispatchers, city officials said.

According to Emergency Management Director James Carswell, the eight new dispatchers have completed about three weeks of initial training and have begun field training as dispatchers while working with a spotter at the consoles at E-911.

Carswell said that the new employees will help ease the burden shouldered by existing dispatchers who had been dealing with an increasingly large call volume.

“This was just something that was needed and had been needed for quite a while,” Carswell said. “The number of dispatchers for E-911 hasn’t been changed for years, but the call volume has gone up three or four times.”

Steve Butler, the communications manager at E-911, says that the added help will most benefit the callers to the center.

“The added positions will provide a level or hierarchy that will free up supervisors to do their jobs while making sure that the calls get answered and units dispatched more quickly,” Butler said.

The bump in staff could also help lower insurance rates thanks to an ISO requirement that could net Albany and Dougherty County more points toward a lower rating.

“That’s one added benefit,” Carswell said. “Getting the number of dispatchers up gives us like 10 points towards our ISO score and that contributes to our overall rating.”

The new positions are funded by a cell phone surcharge for 911 and paid for by cell phone users throughout Dougherty County, Carswell said. The new positions don’t have any impact on the general fund of the city, he said.

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