Dear Fire Department &/or EMS Personnel, County Commissioner &/or Concerned Citizen;
Are you aware the Laverne Town Board is attempting to shut down the Laverne Police Department dispatch office? Because of resident outrage, they have been unable to completely close it. They are trying now to shut down one shift at a time, starting with the night shift which is midnight to 8:00 a.m. Admittedly, seldom does anything happen during that shift, but when it does, it's usually not a small thing. {Click here for more information on what dispatchers, also known as Public Safety Telecommunicators, do.}
The justification for shutting down is, the officers and EMS can use cell phones. This concerns me because:
Jeff Howard, City Superintendent, has risked his job by refusing to close down the shift until he knows for sure the Fire Departments are covered. Jeff works tirelessly, especially nights, evenings, and weekends to make sure our emergency personnel and the Laverne city workers are safe. It would be impossible to keep up with a number of firemen cellphones, much less keep up their prompt response times. He has worked very hard to make sure the Laverne dispatch communications are optimal. The average area reached (depending on atmospheric conditions) is nearly as far as:
The Laverne dispatch serves several fire departments because Harper, Ellis, and Beaver County Sheriffs Offices cannot consistently reach:
{Click here for an example of dispatchers helping firemen.}
As a concerned citizen and landowner East of Laverne who was affected by the 283/Starbuck fire of March 2017 and has had to use 911 services in life threatening emergencies for my family, I feel compelled to make this information known.
I've been working for the Laverne Police Department as a part time dispatcher since September, 2016. After working with this amazing group of professionals through the great ice storm of January, 2017 and the fires of 2017 and 2018, I think I have some possible solutions for you to consider:
Many questions would have to be worked through. There would still be cost, but hopefully, if we can work together, the cost would not be someone's life.
Thank you for your time and consideration,
Dawnita Fogleman 18274 E 20 RD Laverne OK 73848 (580)921-3974
Are you aware the Laverne Town Board is attempting to shut down the Laverne Police Department dispatch office? Because of resident outrage, they have been unable to completely close it. They are trying now to shut down one shift at a time, starting with the night shift which is midnight to 8:00 a.m. Admittedly, seldom does anything happen during that shift, but when it does, it's usually not a small thing. {Click here for more information on what dispatchers, also known as Public Safety Telecommunicators, do.}
The justification for shutting down is, the officers and EMS can use cell phones. This concerns me because:
- We still have dead spots for cell service out here. If the Ambulance were to have mechanical difficulties and could not call out, someone could die.
- If a police officer finds himself in a dangerous situation, it's much harder to fumble with a phone compared to pushing one button on a radio.
Jeff Howard, City Superintendent, has risked his job by refusing to close down the shift until he knows for sure the Fire Departments are covered. Jeff works tirelessly, especially nights, evenings, and weekends to make sure our emergency personnel and the Laverne city workers are safe. It would be impossible to keep up with a number of firemen cellphones, much less keep up their prompt response times. He has worked very hard to make sure the Laverne dispatch communications are optimal. The average area reached (depending on atmospheric conditions) is nearly as far as:
- Clearlake in Beaver County
- East of Buffalo in Harper County
- Fort Supply in Woodward County
- Shattuck in Ellis County
- Englewood in Kansas
The Laverne dispatch serves several fire departments because Harper, Ellis, and Beaver County Sheriffs Offices cannot consistently reach:
- Laverne Fire Department
- Rosston Fire Department
- May Fire Department
- Gate Fire Department
- Slapout Fire Department
- Catesby Fire Department
{Click here for an example of dispatchers helping firemen.}
As a concerned citizen and landowner East of Laverne who was affected by the 283/Starbuck fire of March 2017 and has had to use 911 services in life threatening emergencies for my family, I feel compelled to make this information known.
I've been working for the Laverne Police Department as a part time dispatcher since September, 2016. After working with this amazing group of professionals through the great ice storm of January, 2017 and the fires of 2017 and 2018, I think I have some possible solutions for you to consider:
- Making Laverne's dispatch into a Regional Emergency Communications Center, which several communities/counties would financially support. {Click this link for more information on what a Regional Emergency Communications Center is.}
- Creating a mobile Tactical Dispatch team that would be paged with the emergency services personnel to work individual incidents only as needed. Both options would take some logistic consideration. {Click this link for more information on what Tactical Dispatch is.}
Many questions would have to be worked through. There would still be cost, but hopefully, if we can work together, the cost would not be someone's life.
Thank you for your time and consideration,
Dawnita Fogleman 18274 E 20 RD Laverne OK 73848 (580)921-3974
RSS Feed