E-9-1-1 Board bridges gap with firefighters

LAKESHORE - Claims of delays in emergency notifications from the Winston County E-9-1-1 office to county firefighters were addressed during the October 21, county firefighters association meeting, also attended by E-9-1-1 board members and dispatchers.
The former Sister Sara’s restaurant, now known as The Lodge, at the Looney’s Complex was filled to capacity for the meeting, with E-9-1-1 board members seated among firefighters from across the county. Dispatchers from E-9-1-1 were seated in a separate row.
The idea in bringing these groups together was to discuss issues expressed by firefighters at last month’s association meeting, concerns that calls to fire departments were being delayed. 
The E-9-1-1 board and dispatchers attended this month’s meeting to answer any questions from firefighters or other first responders, stressed Jeff Mobley, attorney for the E-9-1-1 Board.
Also in attendance was Dylan Farley, representing Echo9-1-1, an alternate dispatch service. Echo9-1-1 is currently being used as dispatch for the Winston County Rescue Squad ambulance service. Firefighters at their September association meeting had discussed whether to switch their dispatch service to Echo9-1-1 after claims of delays in dispatching from Winston E-9-1-1.
The gap between claims of delays with E-9-1-1 notifying fire departments was bridged at the meeting with a unanimous vote taken by the firefighters, who voted that fire departments are to be toned out to all motor vehicle accidents--whether or not injuries are involved, as well as accidents on private property.
The only exception to this was Haleyville, which has its own dispatch, members discussed at the meeting.
“On wrecks with a vehicle, there is always a fire hazard,” pointed out Winston County Emergency Management Director A.J. Brown.
Making the motion was Winston County District 1 Commissioner Rutger Hyche, who is also a member of the firefighters association. Seconding the motion was Pebble Fire Chief Jesse Salter, and all association members voted in favor.
“We’ve had a few incidents lately where a deputy and RPS or a deputy has beaten fire departments to wrecks,” stressed Ashridge Fire Chief Daniel Robins. 
“It’s not a big deal,” he added, “but take somewhere like Ashridge. We’re all volunteers. No one mans our station. If you send a deputy to a wreck, and let’s say the deputy is by himself, you’ve got (a) 30-35 minute ETA (estimated time of arrival) to the wreck.
“That’s 35 minutes you have already wasted,” Robins pointed out. “They get on the scene. There is a wreck, with injuries. They call the fire and EMS.
“You are waiting 30-35 minutes to get them dispatched, so you are already behind the eight-ball. It takes us 3-5 minutes to get to our station, depending on traffic,” Robins continued.
“If they call us, we can be headed that way.  If the deputy gets on scene before us and everything is fine, they can cancel us,” Robins stated.
“I would rather be halfway there and not be needed than be needed and I am having to fight the delay of leaving 45 minutes later and we just found out about it.”
Jeff Mobley, the attorney representing the Winston E-9-1-1 Board, then asked, “What do we do if 9-1-1 does not get the call direct? How would we handle that?
“In other words, they call the sheriff’s department or they call state troopers and say ‘I have had a wreck.  Do you (firefighters) ever get notified?” Mobley then asked.
Winston County E-9-1-1 Dispatcher Stacy Chamblin responded, “We have that issue where the sheriff’s office will use their cell phones or whatever communication they use.  We don’t get the information.”
In such cases, the sheriff’s office dispatcher has called 9-1-1 on their administrative line and let them know of a wreck, Chamblin explained.
“Again, we don’t always get all the information,” Chamblin pointed out.
“If it doesn’t come through (the E-9-1-1) office, then we don’t get toned,” stressed Randall Russell, president of the Winston County Firefighters Association.
“If you don’t know about it, then we don’t need to know about it,” stated Central Fire Assistant Chief Ashley Tucker.
Farley told the audience he had placed before them copies of a draft of totals in working with Winston County E-9-1-1. 
“This is the first anybody has seen it,” Farley noted. “It’s a draft. It’s some of the information we have gotten doing our own research.”
George Gibson, an Arley firefighter who is also chairman of the Winston County E-9-1-1 Board, introduced a row of E-9-1-1 dispatchers, as well as board members in attendance and Wayne Collins,  dispatch supervisor who is now interim director.
“Most of this is in reaction to what came out in the paper, where you raked us over the coals,” Gibson addressed firefighters. “I have asked you for years to go to the 9-1-1 board and the 9-1-1 office and see what is going on,but, as far as I know, no one has gone.”
“George, there are some of us who have been over there,” responded Tucker, who asked the dispatchers to stand back up and introduce themselves.
“All we know is your voice,” said Tucker.
Dispatchers  in attendance from the E-9-1-1 office included Stella Alexander, Stacy Chamblin, Jim Chamblin, Melissa Bollinger, Avery Hall, Brenda Aldridge and James Whitman.
Russell noted questions directed to the E 9-1-1 board or dispatchers would be handled during the new business portion of the meeting.
E 9-1-1 Board Member and Board Treasurer Horace Moore stood and addressed the crowd, stating that improvements are being made. Moore specifically mentioned that the new CAD (Computer-Aided Dispatch) system has been installed, with training on the new system expected over the next two weeks. The new CAD system should be online November 10, according to E-9-1-1 officials.
The CAD will be used to track the addresses and call information and dispatch the departments, creating a computer-generated reporting system to replace the current paper method, officials described.
“Hopefully, that will make us more efficient,” Moore said. “Just like with our dispatchers, we’re going to have some protocol, to tally in and out.  It should be right on the money.”
A storm shelter has also been installed at the E 9-1-1 center for the employees, Moore added.
“We have not been just sitting there not doing anything,” said Moore. “We’ve been working ever since you came in and asked us to do some things we couldn’t do with the (older system).”
Moore urged that if there were any questions to contact himself or any member of the E-9-1-1 board and they would “get to the bottom of it.”
Ron Alexander, a Haleyville dispatcher the past 26 years, then addressed the crowd, defending dispatchers.
“I am probably the only one in here who has dispatched every fire department in this county on one call at one time because lightning took out 9-1-1 and they couldn’t dispatch,” Alexander began.
“It takes lots of dedication. It takes lots of hard work.  You sacrifice a whole lot,” he said. 
“I am not trying to be hateful or disrespectful.  When tones go off for some area departments, I cringe because I know if any other department has a call during that time, their help is going to be affected.
“Sometimes, when some of you are toned out, you talk to them like they are a rented mule,” Alexander further stated. “You worked them like they are a rented mule.
“I have heard some of you just demand, do me this, do me that,” Alexander said, as the pitch of his voice raised. “I hope you don’t realize it because it you are doing it, realizing it, it’s sad.”
“Are you going to bring recordings to the next meeting of all this hateful stuff you have heard on the radio?” yelled former Helicon Fire Chief Neil Feist from the back of the room.
“No sir, I don’t have to.  I don’t record it,” Alexander exclaimed in return. “It’s not always, but I have heard it. I have heard the demands. I hear them daily. I am not being hateful to you guys. I seriously think you mean the best.”
Arley Fire Chief James Rickett asked  E 9-1-1 about instances where people had to call the fire department because they couldn’t reach 9-1-1.
“We have never had any problems with our 9-1-1 trunks,” Collins responded. “Occasionally we do with the admin lines because of Brightspeed (internet service).”
Farley from Echo9-1-1 then stated he knew of a recent issue where Winston County E-9-1-1 couldn’t transfer a caller to them in order to dispatch a call for the rescue squad ambulance.
“There are several times when we call all their numbers and they don’t answer,” Farley stated.
“That’s going to be your landlines. That’s not going to be cell phone service,” Stacy  responded. “The landline and the cell phone are going to be completely different. That is where there’s a different carrier.”
E 9-1-1 board members explained they have experienced trouble with Brightspeed. 
Farley said he could produce phone records on his claim that calls were not answered, to which Mobley responded that he had trouble with Brightspeed service at his law office. 
“Our clients are calling us, but it is never ringing into our office,” Mobley gave as an example.
“It is not 9-1-1.  It is Brightspeed that is just awful,” Mobley stated. “We can’t fix Brightspeed.”
Feist then specifically addressed E-91-1 dispatchers. “I don’t believe any one in here from the fire departments feels you don’t do the best job you can.
“I am going to say for myself. I cannot speak for the rest, I feel your leadership over the last few years has kept you from being the best you can be,” Feist told dispatchers.
“I think you can be the best,” he added. “We’re Winston County. “We’re (the home of) the first 9-1-1 call.
“I think you guys have been held back and I pray that it all gets better,” Feist concluded.
Lynn Police Chief Bryan Kirkpatrick, who is also a member of the Winston County E-9-1-1 board, told the crowd that new policies had been implemented, that all tones to the department had to be set off within two minutes, or 120 seconds, of when the call comes in.
“We understand there is going to be more than 120 seconds due to a hysterical caller, language barrier and equipment malfunction,” Kirkpatrick said.
“All the dispatchers need to set the tones is an address or intersection and the  nature of the call,” Kirkpatrick added. “Then, anything after that, the fire department can be updated as they are going to the scene.
“Our whole thing is to get the fire departments responding as quickly to the scene as possible,” Kirkpatrick emphasized.
“The calls that I have checked today, it’s done,” Kirkpatrick said. “If the dispatcher goes over that (time limit),  they have a report to fill out of why they went over it.
“Every month, if there are any overages, the director is going to present that to the board so we know what’s going on,” Kirkpatrick stated.
Double Springs Fire Chief Brandon Lewis asked E-9-1-1 if the new CAD system would translate languages, to which Stacy Chamblin responded that they now have that capability.
“It’s in our call system and also our texting that you text to 9-1-1,” Stacy explained. “I believe it’s 55  translations, different languages...”
Hyche noted they had received a call for lift assist, but those two words were the only part of the description they received, so he asked if the new system would provide responders with more details.
Collins answered that the new CAD system would provide more details for responders.
“We are all going to have to get together and make sure our systems are unified, that you know the capabilities of our system and that your system matches our system,” Mobley stressed. 
“That’s where the communication has got to come in,” he added.
“Part of the new system is to try to get you toned out as soon as possible, with the understanding that because we can update the system, once you are rolling, they are going to need updates added to the information in the CAD,” Mobley continued.
“If you aren’t getting it, they you are never going to know,” he added. “If your system is not set up to receive that, then it is going to cause real confusion, so make sure you get with us and make sure that is clear in your system.”