POLICE AND FIRE 911 CENTERS MERGE

(6/13/2007) NEW HAVEN- The emergency communication centers, effectively the 911 answering centers for the police and fire department have merged into one united Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP). This $1.9 million project was completed over a period of seven months and is now fully equipped to handle all 911, fire and police communications. The new facility houses 18 work stations, each fully equipped with state of the art consoles to handle all public safety telephone and radio communications. The new model allows all personnel to answer both fire and police emergency calls, a transition that employees are being cross-trained for.

“This is a great achievement for New Haven police and fire as it reduces response time and gets residents the help they need without wasted transfer time,” said Mayor John DeStefano, Jr. “Public safety is a priority in our city and I am proud of the work our police and fire departments have made to continuously improve services to our residents.”

The new PSAP will provide enhanced call handling and improved radio interoperability both within the City and with Yale Police as well as the State and surrounding towns. In creating this improved system New Haven benefits from a $300,000 State incentive offered to municipalities to combine police and fire 911 operations into a single location. New Haven will receive this incentive annually to help pay for 911 related expenses.

"This combined 911 center will make us more efficient and better able to respond to the needs of the residents of this city,” said Police Chief Francisco Ortiz.

The new joint facility will improve public safety by allowing for direct response to each call rather than having to transfer calls from remote locations as had to be done in the past.

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Contact Name: Jessica Mayorga

Contact Email: jmayorga@newhavenct.net

Contact Phone: 203-946-7660