Wolfe City Fire Rescue has addressed concerns regarding the radio and dispatch system used by volunteer fire departments in Hunt County. The department has highlighted several issues affecting emergency response in the area:
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Third-Party EMS Dispatch: American Medical Response (AMR) dispatches volunteer fire departments in Hunt County. The dispatch center, located in the metroplex, handles multiple EMS systems across several states. This setup results in delays and potential call loss due to dispatcher overload.
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911 Call Routing: Calls to 911 in Hunt County for fire or EMS incidents are initially received by the Sheriff's Department and then transferred to AMR dispatch. Delays of 5-10 minutes, and even up to 20 minutes, have been documented due to the dispatcher handling multiple agencies across counties.
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Outdated Radio System: The volunteer fire department's radio system, not supported by Hunt County, faces continuous problems. The internet link between Hunt County and the dispatch center causes reception issues. The system has been operating in a backup mode for five days, resulting in unclear communication and delays in resource allocation.
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Exclusion from New Radio System: While Hunt County is transitioning to a new radio system, volunteer fire departments are not included. Discussions about future inclusion are ongoing, but there's uncertainty. Immediate inclusion would benefit from a 45% discount available until the year-end.
In light of these safety concerns, Wolfe City Fire Rescue proposes two solutions:
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Fire Dispatch Centralization: Moving fire dispatch to the Hunt County Sheriff's Department dispatch center could reduce delays in volunteer fire department response.
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Inclusion in New Radio System: Hunt County should fund the inclusion of volunteer fire departments in the new radio system to address ongoing safety issues.
The department emphasizes the paramount importance of citizen safety and urges residents to contact county commissioners to support these upgrades.
