When tragedy struck, the dispatchers of California stepped up to help. That’s the lesson from the murder of four Oakland (Calif.) police officers last month, an event that plunged the city into grief and stunned law enforcement officers and their dispatchers from around the state–and even around the world. The shooting occurred on a Saturday, and by 6 a.m. the next Wednesday, over 100 dispatchers from 46 agencies across the state were in place to take telephone calls and enter incidents into CAD. That gave OPD’s comm center staff of 80 a chance to take time off, attend the Friday memorial service, and to re-group as individuals and a unit before returning to work.
The response of dispatchers was coordinated by the California Tactical Dispatchers Association. The group’s president, Kurt Anderson (Roseville PD), says the group was originally formed to promote use of dispatchers in the field at large incidents. But it quickly became apparent that the skills of tactical dispatchers could also provide staffing among agencies, just like fire departments have used mutual aid for decades. That concept of assistance started with regional aid at first, Anderson says, but then quickly spread to providing aid to all points of the state, and even to other states when the need arose.
In this case, Anderson says, the need was obvious, but unprecedented. He put out a call to the association’s members, and he received over 500 responses. He began sifting the available help and eventually called in 107 dispatchers, including from Los Angeles. Many of the dispatchers were local and had a place to sleep, but others were put up at local motels. Anderson says his association funded some of the motel rooms, while the California Association of Hostage Negotiators picked up the remaining tab, along with money for food.
The first dispatchers began work at 6 a.m. on Wednesday, and finished at about 3 p.m. on Friday, just hours after the officers’ memorial service ended. A small group of OPD dispatchers handled the radio during those three days, Anderson said, while the volunteers handled the 18 telephone consoles and other tasks.
OPD uses Printrak CAD for handling operations, which might have caused operational problems. But Anderson said that other agencies that use that same software sent dispatchers to help, including Vallejo, Eureka and the Fresno County Sheriff. “We used them as our trainers,” Anderson said in an interview with DISPATCH Magazine. He said it took only about an hour for each volunteer dispatcher to learn the CAD and telephone system, and to begin taking phone calls efficiently.
Operationally, “There were always Oakland people there,” Anderson said, to answer technical or police-procedure questions that arose. Even during the memorial service, key OPD personnel available to provide help.
The only issues that arose, Anderson said, is that all the volunteer dispatchers needed ID numbers and CAD log-on accounts. That process took some coordination and time to complete. Also, some dispatchers didn’t arrive with compatible headsets, and OPD didn’t have a large supply of extras. But they were eventually able to outfit all the dispatchers.
Anderson said that he hopes this response, as sad as it was, will serve as an inspiration to other agencies in the U.S., and as a model of what can be accomplished by the nation’s dispatchers. For comm centers in other state who might consider establishing a tactical or mutual aid dispatcher plan, Anderson recommends starting with a regional approach, and than expanding. “Start county-wide, or even a couple of counties, and see what kind of interest you have,” he said. “As the numbers are there, and as the interest is there, and the participation grows, you could certainly make it bigger.”
Anderson recalled that the California association started six years ago with just a simple inquiry to the state’s dispatchers, and it has grown
Anderson said that anyone in California interested in association membership can visit the group’s Web page, or e-mail him directly. He’s also willing to discuss forming your own tactical dispatchers’ association.
Update: Coincidentally, APCO has just posted a proposed standard for Tactical Emergency Response Taskforce deployment, which covers dispatcher mutual aid for major incidents. They are requesting comments on the proposed standard by May 11, 2009. Find full information here, or download (pdf) proposed standard here.
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