OSAGE COUNTY — Osage County 911/EMA Director Ron Hoffman is shelving the idea of replacing the Emergency Operations Center (EOC) communications system. A few months ago, Hoffman was ready to have Intrado Corporation install its Viper system. He was meeting with technicians about setting up for it when a problem became apparent. The Intrado sales team had, maybe by accident, overstated a new system’s ability. It was advertised to fully integrate with systems in neighboring jurisdictions. 

“They should have known Gasconade County would not be compatible,” Hoffman told the Osage County 911 Advisory Committee on Wednesday, Aug. 10. The original plan was to have Osage County’s new system piggyback from Gasconade County.

“There’s the big problem,” agreed Steve Smyth, board member at large.

Meanwhile, current vendor Solacom of Downer’s Grove, Ill., has made a corporate change that solved the problem, which had Hoffman shopping for a replacement in the first place. The existing system was due for an update, and the county budget was prepared for it; but suddenly, Solacom wasn’t answering phone calls to set up that process. The lack of Solacom customer service was the reason Hoffman reached out to Intrado. 

“Solacom has suddenly started working with us,” said Hoffman. “They’ve got a new guy, and he flew up from Oklahoma.”

STAFFING

The EOC still has an opening for one full-time telecommunicator. Hoffman is now recruiting but, in the meantime, is covering some night shifts to fill in holes. “It’s easier to put myself on nights,” he explained. 

FACILITIES

It had been over two years with no leaks in the Annex basement. However, one of the dispatchers noticed a little moisture after recent heavy rain. Hoffman was unable to trace it, and it dried up almost immediately.

Hoffman is also struggling with the county’s emergency radio system. “I’d like to try to get a new radio vendor,” he explained. 

Radio maintenance is not being done to his satisfaction. In particular, uninterruptible power supply (UPS) units need new batteries. Hoffman is having to get those batteries himself. The contracted vendor should maintain them. 

The EOC is still negotiating with Global CAD (computer-aided design) Technology to replace or upgrade the current system now in use. Hoffman is in no hurry, though, to purchase a new program. “Ours may be slow and sluggish since we don’t delete enough data,” he explained. “We’re working to clean that up. Once we clean that up, we should be fine.”

DISPATCHER TRAINING

“Training continues,” Hoffman said. He then turned the report on ProQA dispatch system training over to EOC Training Coordinator Savana Atkisson. 

“We’re doing pretty well with our partial and low complaint compliance,” said Atkisson, in summary. Total accreditation acceptance is good throughout the office. 

Hoffman, Atkisson, and the whole dispatch staff are increasingly enthusiastic about the ProQA system. With more than two years of experience now in Osage County, it continues to impress with both its performance and the Priority Dispatch company’s training regimen. 

“I think this is an outstanding program,” said Hoffman.

“I’m pretty excited about it,” agreed Atkisson. “We’ve had a lot of good improvement. Everybody wants to improve.” Committee members continue to be impressed with the system’s ability to increase enthusiasm for better performance throughout the group of telecommunicators.

Dozens of calls are recorded and reviewed by ProQA each month. Data from those calls are returned to Atkisson for her to review with the dispatchers who were recorded. 

Hoffman is also still trying to establish a cybersecurity training program. “We’re not giving up on it,” he said.

ROAD SIGNS

EOC Supervisor Travis Holtmeyer displayed the new design for county road signs. They’re now made of plastic and cost less than $2 apiece. They are also now mounted to read vertically instead of horizontally, attaching to the post from end to end, creating a problem for vandals who want to steal them. Thieves now have to tear the sign up to where it’s not worth having instead of taking them home whole.  

MAPPING

Holtmeyer and Hoffman are interested in getting a new mapping program. Should they decide to purchase one before the next refresh is done to the old program, the county would have $3,700 available, already budgeted. A new system would cost $13,000. Hoffman is looking for a grant to cover the balance. “I’ve been looking over the budget to see what I can save,” he added.

REPURPOSED RADIOS

Sheriff Mike Bonham has discovered that radios from patrol cars being retired from service make solid upgrades to other first-response vehicles. They are all high-quality digital instruments. He’s making sure they make their way to fire districts and ambulance agencies. “It’s much better communication,” Bonham observed, comparing the units with those typically in use in fire trucks and ambulances. 

New cars in the sheriff’s office get new radios paid for by grants. At this point, ambulances are getting first dibs on equipment being repurposed.

Schedule

The next meeting of the Osage County 911 Advisory Committee is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 9, in the EOC.