The Daviess County 911 Board is considering the purchase of a DTN weather computer. The computer would provide more concise weather information.
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The Daviess County 911 Board has considered purchasing a DTN weather computer for more concise weather information instead of waiting for the television or radio reports. The radar maps of weather would indicate the potential for tornado activity and the message center at the bottom of the screen would be direct from the weather center. The supervisor for 911, Tim Andrew, hopes to start a team of weather watchers across the area. The board is currently negotiating a purchase price.
The board is also going to have tools ready soon for area fire departments to erect road signs that have been knocked down. Supervisor Andrew and board members will be putting up the road signs. All of the area fire departments except KAW Fire District have agreed to take over keeping the road signs up in the future. The board is requesting all Daviess County residents to report any signs down to the 911 office at 663-4252.
Dispatcher stability has improved with all of the current employees having completed their probationary period. Each dispatcher has driven the county on his/her own time in order to better understand the county when sending any response units. In addition, all dispatchers are current with the Missouri State Statutes as far as training requirements to provide medical, police, and fire directions during a 911 call.
Coloring books were provided to the Gallatin R-5 kindergarten class upon request to emphasize 911 during this month of fire prevention awareness. The kindergarten class was asked to call 911 when their parents were present to practice with their addresses.
The board has installed a propane-operated generator for the 911 office outside the courthouse that can be used in case of emergency. Should all power fail, as it has several times in the past, 911 would still be operational. The board was informed recently that the courthouse would be switching to Gallatin’s natural gas system and has ascertained that the new generator is adaptable.
The board approved the 911 radio frequency being made digital, which is fine-tuning of the FM frequency. This move should prevent radio interference during communications. The board was also advised that with the FM radio waves becoming more congested with traffic, the digital frequency will provide better protection in the future. Most of the mobile and handheld radios have been changed and in the future will be the responsibility of the area entities that own them. Area entities that have not completed payments for the radios are being contacted for an end-of-the-year summation of funds necessary for 911 bookkeeping.
Some county road maps are still available. These are free and may be picked up at the 911 central dispatch office on the first floor of the courthouse.
The 911 dispatchers cannot leave the office at any time. Since there are some male dispatchers, the ladies’ outer rest room door has to be locked at certain times of the day at the courthouse to accommodate the male dispatchers. The board asks for the public’s patience and consideration on the matter.
The board would also like to advise the citizens of Gallatin that city police protection has been limited by the city council. If an officer is not on duty, it is because of the work schedule and is not the fault of the 911 dispatchers if an officer does not respond. The board urges Gallatin citizens to contact their city council if they are unhappy with the city’s current police response or if no officer responds. Gallatin city council members are L.B. Davis, Norma Griffin, Bob Snidow, Bill McGinnis and Larry Barnes.
Certain board members and the supervisor of 911 will contact area fire departments for a meeting regarding any questions or concerns.
The meeting will also be informative on radio training and map interpretation. After that, the 911 board plans on contacting the area city councils to address any further questions.
The 911 board meets at 7 p.m. in the first floor room of the courthouse on the last Thursday night of each month, unless the particular day falls on a holiday and then they meet the preceding Thursday night. The public is welcome to attend.