Contra Costa County Emergency Communications Center Gets Phone System Upgrade

The communications center that handles emergency calls for Contra Costa County just got a major upgrade to its phone system that paves the way for new technology meant to improve the response to 911 calls. The new telephone system was installed earlier this month at the Contra Costa Regional Fire Communications Center in Pleasant Hill, where dispatchers answer 911 calls for the majority of the county’s 1.09 million residents, Kody Kerwin, the center’s telecommunications manager, said today.

“As our population continues to grow and technologies advance, we need to ensure that when an emergency call is received we have the right tools in place to protect and serve the citizens of Contra Costa County,” Kerwin said. The upgraded phone system will allow the call center to more quickly incorporate future technologies, such as those that pinpoint a caller’s location. One technological upgrade the fire communications center is eyeing is a system that allows callers to text instead of calling 911 -- something that is available in some states but not yet in California, according to Kerwin.

As before, the upgraded phone system is configured so that callers can reach emergency communications personnel even if the communications center itself becomes flooded, damaged or inundated with calls.

The $400,000 phone system was funded by the state, Kerwin said.

—By Bay City News

Photo via Shutterstock.