City of North Bend release – Citing critical staffing shortages and public safety concerns, Police Chief Gary McCullough and Fire Chief Jim Brown requested and received approval from the North Bend City Council to move forward with a proposal to transfer dispatch services to Coos Bay. Most North Benders are unaware there are only two Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP) locations in Coos County that answer all 9-1-1 calls. One is at the Coos County Sheriff’s Office in Coquille, the other at the Coos Bay Police Department. When callers in North Bend call 9-1-1, their calls are answered in Coquille, then depending on the type of emergency (e.g., police, fire, medical, etc.) are transferred to North Bend Police or another agency. There is a nationwide shortage of telecommunicators, which require state certification and between five and nine months of on-the-job training before they can dispatch solo. North Bend only has a single certified dispatcher per shift. Despite having top-notch staff, a single dispatcher cannot handle the volume of calls, radio traffic, multi-agency coordination efforts during significant emergency events. Coos Bay operates with as many as five dispatchers per shift and already dispatches multiple agencies, including the City of Coquille and Tribal Police. North Bend has evaluated nearly 20 proposals to transfer dispatch services since 2000. Tuesday’s decision by the City Council is expected to save taxpayers $723,400 through the Fiscal Year 2025.
Presentation Document: https://bit.ly/3EZUHsB Video Presentation: https://bit.ly/3ytCAJ8

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