The Automated Secure Alarm Protocol (ASAP) will send
information from automated alarms, such as ADT and Doyle directly to the 911
computer system for immediate dispatch, according to county 911 Deputy Director
Tina Goodwin.
In the past, Steuben’s 911 dispatchers have fielded calls
from alarm monitoring stations and automated alarms installed across the county
including medical, fire and police emergencies from personal devices, schools
and businesses. After gathering all the necessary information, dispatchers then
contact emergency responders to report the alarm has been triggered. With the
ASAP program, information will be processed in seconds -- not minutes-- for dispatch of emergency responders.
The new $15,665 system will reduce significantly the number
of calls the center handles annually, Goodwin said.
Steuben dispatchers receive more than 95,000 phone calls
annually, with roughly 3,600 responses and more than 10,000 phone calls
generated by automatic alarms, she said. ASAP also will send the county 911
Center a report of the calls received and dispatched.
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In other news, the county 911 Center has been awarded
$187,541 under the state Public Safety Answering Points Operations Grant
Program. The grant covers eligible public safety call-taking and dispatching
expenses.
