Secondary PSAP

[MrJim911]

What does your agency have set up in case your radios/phones go down for an extended amount of time? Is there a secondary or backup PSAP you re-locate too? Or on a more drastic note (but apparently not un-realistic) what would you do if your building were to be destroyed? Either by natural means or un-natural, do you have plans that would take effect if this were to happen?

Our backup PSAP is the Sheriffs Dept that our towns are all located in. If our phones were to go down we go back to our "computer room" and flip a switch re-routing all calls to the Counties system. We head over to their location and start working from there. I guess the same would have to apply if our building were to be destroyed, even though I doubt that was a consideration when the mutual iad agreement was set up. We are also their backup if they were to go down.

[DispNowCopL8r]

Hey good question MrJim,

Ours is very complicated but works really well...

If we had to get out of our dispatch center for any reason, we activate what we call P.B.E.C.'s or Precinct Based Emergeny Communication Center's. Each of our dispatchers and call receviers have a set PBEC they go to when this is activated. That's at our 4 major Precinct's, where we have all back up phones/dispatch terminals, etc. We run out to our cars, and drive code 3(not really, but very fast;) ) to our locations, or we make callouts to our other dispatchers at home, etc. It's really fun and I enjoy doing it, all the cops come in and bring stuff sit and chat. The bad part to it is, while we are heading to our PBEC's the people at the local pcts are immedately commissioned as 911 CR's! That means any of the Detectives, Secretaries, and Command Staff. You can imagine the looks on their face when they get a DV or other serious call. The Most recent time we actived our PBEC's was during the earthquake we had up here(and being for CA I can tell you it was really nothing!). Anyway, when I finally got to the pct and took over the 911 calls, the command staff had a new found respect for us! We had 30 seconds where the dispatchers were running out of the building and before they transfer'd the phones...During that time we missed 156 calls!!!! Most of which were people asking if we just had an earthquake, all the other Dispatchers know what I mean when I say that. But then they took over at the pcts and In my personal opinion it worked out really well.