Yuba County getting direct connect on 911 cell calls

Cell phone users in Yuba County who make 911 calls will be able to call county dispatchers directly to report their emergencies when a new system is installed.

County supervisors approved a plan Tuesday to upgrade the 911 system, with the biggest change being where such calls go now when they come from cell phones.

Because the existing system, which dates to 1998, can't accept cell phone calls directly, 911 calls from cells in Yuba County are first routed through the California Highway Patrol's emergency dispatcher in Chico. Chico dispatchers then call the county dispatcher.

That presents problems in two ways: A time delay in getting an emergency responder out to the site of the call, and the unfamiliarity a dispatcher in Chico might have with a Yuba County location.

With the upgrade, the Sheriff's Department will be able to receive calls from cells directly.

Sheriff Steve Durfor said as far as he knows, those problems haven't made any emergency situation worse.

"Overall, it's a major upgrade of our equipment and our radio equipment as well," he said. "Certainly, our quest is to make sure we have the best technology to serve the county and its residents' needs."

Supervisors unanimously approved spending $387,582 for the 911 system upgrade, and $132,000 for new radio equipment, both from AT&T.

The new 911 system won't be paid for directly by the county, but instead through a state fund created through a fee on phone bills.

Sheriff's Department spokeswoman Melanie Oakes said the state requires the county to buy the equipment and install it in the same year. The county is moving ahead now to buy the new system in early 2010 to allow time for it to be installed before the end of next year.

The county will pay for the radio system out of the department's "jail bed trust," though Durfor noted the cost may be less because the radio and 911 systems are being bought from the same vendor.

Supervisor Andy Vasquez, a former reserve deputy with the Sheriff's Department, said it's hard to overstate how much improvement the new system will provide.

"That time delay is the most critical thing in the world," he said. "This can save anywhere from two minutes to 10 minutes to 20 minutes, depending on the situation."

He said the system will also include other upgrades designed to make tasks such as connecting to the right emergency agency easier for dispatchers.

"It's going to be night and day," he said.

The ability to receive 911 calls from cell phones has taken on greater importance in recent years as more people have gotten cells, some of them without any accompanying landline, Vasquez said.

Contact Appeal-Democrat reporter Ben van der Meer at 749-4709 or bvandermeer@appealdemocrat.com. For more Yuba County news, see Ben's blog "Yuba County Insider" at appealdemocrat.com.