County Volunteers Describe Emergency Communications Problems
Several Glasscock County emergency volunteers attended the May 11 meeting of the county commissioners’ court to discuss continuing cell phone coverage problems and the lack of two-way communications. Sheriff Keith Burnett said he asked the volunteers to come to the meeting so they could voice their individual opinions and so they would know first-hand that the commissioners’ court is trying to address their concerns.
There seem to be two main problems: 1) since the county’s cell phone service was changed from Wes-Tex Cellular when it was bought by AT&T, coverage here with AT&T has dramatically worsened, even though AT&T insists it has not reduced power. Cell phones used by county volunteers are often useless due to weak signals, making calls either not come through at all or with a garbled, broken signal that isn’t understandable and 2) even in situations when cell phones work, lack of two-way communication is a major problem.
Regarding the cell phone situation, some say that changing to Alltel/Verizon might increase coverage and help the problem, at least short-term. That merged company has built a new tower on Highway 158 just a few miles west of Garden City, and company reps say when it is operative, it will provide the most power in the area. But there is no word of when it will be in service and there is some question whether phone numbers would remain the same if the county switched to that company, and Burnett says changing numbers is not acceptable.
Better Cell Coverage Won’t Cure Problems
But even if cell phone coverage was much better, volunteers say it wouldn’t answer their problem of communication with the sheriff’s office and with each other after the first page has gone out. They say the first page, sent by the sheriff’s office to either EMS personnel or the VFD, or both, over the county-wide telephone alerting system, goes to both land lines and to cell phones and works great.
It’s after volunteers get the first call that communication problems begin, with no central person to talk to for instructions or general information. Volunteers say they need to call in to say they are responding, to learn how many are needed, where, etc. They can’t call the sheriff’s department because all the others are calling in as well and the lines are busy. So they often waste precious time waiting to get a call through. Also, those manning emergency vehicles say they need a central person to talk to for directions and overall information relative to the emergency situation. Without such information, they say they are working “in the dark.”
Volunteers: Central Dispatching Needed
The volunteers at the meeting were vocal in expressing their opinions about cell phone problems, but regardless of cell phone coverage, they seemed united in the opinion that the county needs some means of central dispatching. In the days when the sheriff’s office and tax office were one, the two tax office people answered calls and handled dispatching during normal office hours, and others were hired to provide the service at night and on weekends. Now, the sheriff and two deputies have to do those things as well as handle their other emergency duties at the same time. Volunteer Darren Jost said this overload in emergency situations is actually dangerous for our law enforcement personnel.
There has been discussion of hiring full-time dispatchers, but it would take four full-time people and one part-time person to provide complete coverage according to Burnett, and County Treasurer Alan Dierschke estimates the cost conservatively at $220,000 per year.
Commissioner Jimmy Strube said the county has always tried to keep property taxes as low as anywhere in West Texas. He thinks with oil values dropping, the county will be in a bind and might have to raise taxes to pay for full-time dispatching. He said county residents will “be up here complaining about a tax increase.”
A. Jansa: ‘It’s All About Patient Care’
Volunteer Alan Jansa said EMT’s are taught that everything is about patient care, and added, “Your decision will determine my patient care – remember that.”
Darren Jost said, “If your wife is lying out there, you’d want us there.” He asked, “If dispatchers aren’t the answer, what is?”
Volunteers Mitchell Jansa and Galen Schwartz said better cell phones won’t answer the problem – dispatchers are needed.
Volunteer Carol Jost said, “It’s a horrible feeling to just sit and wait to get a call through, but even with stronger phones, we have no in-between person. We need a dispatcher.”
Volunteer Russell Halfmann said it recently took him 20 minutes to determine the location of the emergency he was trying to respond to. He said Burnett is “doing a great job, but needs help with communications.” Later, R. Halfmann asked, “Can we get other government funding if the county can’t afford dispatchers?”
Burnett said he would support “whatever works.”
County & Volunteers Appreciate Each Other
All the volunteers were grateful for the county’s traditional and continuing support of them and for the equipment and training the county provides. Alan Jansa said, “We know we’re spoiled.”
Mitchell Jansa said he tells clients who want to pay for ambulance service that they have gotten a free ride courtesy of Glasscock County. He says he gives them a donor card if they want to contribute to the local EMS, but the service is free.
The commissioners voiced their continued support of all the county’s volunteers and praised their work. They said they want to solve the current problems, but don’t know exactly how to do it, saying they also have to consider costs.
After the volunteers had left the meeting, the court later discussed the topic further, with Commissioner Michael Hoch saying someone should be hired who knows more about the cell phone power problems and who might suggest some available options. He also suggested that after Burnett moves out of the county apartment where he now lives, maybe someone could live in the apartment who would answer the emergency phone as payment instead of rent.
Both Commissioners Mark Halfmann and Gary Jones have mentioned the possibility of current county office employees answering emergency phones and handling dispatching, being paid extra if necessary. That system worked in the past and might be possible again.
Jones asked what the cost of a transmission tower would be if the county partnered with a cell phone company. Hoch said the county shouldn’t have to go that far to get coverage.
Strube said hiring dispatchers would make the county liable for comp time, but Treasurer Alan Dierschke said that wouldn’t apply if they were only dispatchers, who would be considered clerical. Strube said, “Whose department would they work for? What happens when two don’t show up on Christmas Day?” He suggested getting everyone on Alltel, at least as a short-term solution.
No action was taken in the matter.