City of Ocala emergency dispatch continues to struggle

A firefighter walks out of the at the Classic Laundromat store after a large explosion on Northeast 25th Avenue in Ocala, Fla. on Tuesday, July 30, 2024. [Bruce Ackerman/Ocala Gazette] 2024.

Editor’s note: The author of this article lives in an automatic-aid area of Marion County, where in an emergency, OPD and OFR would likely have closer units to respond. The split communication center, the two CAD systems, in addition to challenges related to cell phones, are all factors pointing to extra challenges hindering first responders as they respond to calls for help. These are serious concerns in life-or-death situations when seconds count.  

An explosion this week at a northeast Ocala shopping plaza that left four people injured also revealed more cracks in the emergency response operations in the city of Ocala, a subject the “Gazette” has been reporting on for the past six months.

Ocala Police Chief Michael Balken said the first of numerous 911 calls came about the explosion rang into the OPD call center at 18:17:33. We are still waiting for the computer-aided dispatch (CAD) report to understand the first minute and 45 seconds of the initial call.

Ocala Fire Rescue’s incident report reflects that at least one caller thought more people were likely injured. The report quotes a portion of the CAD report more than a minute and a half into the call:

18:19:07 additional caller advises that there was an explosion at 10-20 (the location) and people are inside;

18:19:18 advises that they are pulling people out;

According to OFR’s incident report, the OPD call center dispatched OFR to the scene at 18:19:18, a full minute and 45 seconds after the initial call came in.

In response to the “Gazette’s” email inquiry, Balken wrote, “The Ocala Police Department’s 911 call center received the first call at 18:17:33. The call was then dispatched and Ocala Fire Rescue personnel arrived on scene in less than 3 minutes from the time the call was answered. Ocala Police Officers were dispatched and arrived on scene in under 4 minutes from the time the call was answered.”

But records reflect OFR didn’t have fire suppression units at the explosion until almost 9 minutes from the call coming in, and a glaring misstep in notifying Marion County Fire Rescue, which dispatches ambulances throughout Marion County of almost six minutes.

18:17:33 First call to OPD, according to Balken.

18:19:18: OFR is dispatched according to OFR incident report.

18:21 One OFR rescue unit (without fire suppression tools) arrives on the scene, according to the OFR incident report.

18:23 Battalion chief (without fire suppression tools) arrives.

18:26 the first fire engine arrives, followed by the second at 18:27 and a third at 18:49 according to OFR report.

OPD did not notify MCFR until 18:23:18, or almost six minutes after the initial call came in. Once MCFR dispatched ambulances, the first arrived on the scene in approximately 3 minutes, according to MCFR’s CAD report.

In response to the delay in notifying MCFR, Balken wrote that they are “reviewing a delay regarding notification to Marion County Fire Rescue, which appears to have been caused by employee error.”

Although Ocala and Marion County emergency teams officially work under an automatic aid agreement, the county and city work use different CAD systems, meaning county dispatchers can’t automatically see the city’s calls and the city can’t see the county’s calls. They must manually alert each other, extra steps that can create delays and raise the chances for human error.

This challenge is compounded by low staffing levels at the Ocala operation, and unrealistic expectations OPD places on its dispatchers, who also serve as floor supervisors to the 911 call takers and are expected to be able to toggle between law and fire dispatch.

Sadly, dispatch irregularities like Tuesday’s explosion are not isolated incidents.

On July 11, a motorcycle and auto accident happened in the city limits at SE 24^th Street and 36^th Avenue. As the person who had been driving the motorcycle lay unconscious on the road, bystanders called 911.

The call went to OPD call center, the city assigned the closest OFR units at 19:35:54 but did not notify MCFR to send ambulances until 19:37:15, nearly two minutes later. The MCFR dispatcher had the ambulance rolling 31 seconds later, and it arrived on scene within one minute of being dispatched.

The “Gazette’s” extensive review of 911 operations has shown OPD dispatchers typically alert the county’s call center to have dispatch send MCFR ambulances first. The two recent incidents where the ambulances were the last units to be dispatched—on July 11 and 30—hopefully were anomalies. However, combined with the other incidents we’ve reported on, there seems to be a problem that is affecting the consistency of city emergency communication systems that could be attributed to the city’s failure to follow recommended staffing levels, oversight, and consolidation with sister agencies.

After the “Gazette” reported several similar examples through this year,  Ocala City Council president Barry Mansfield reaffirmed he was asking for answers.

City of Ocala Mayor Ben Marciano issued a a statement in response to the “Gazette’s” inquiry, which is posted at the end of this story in full.

Our concern is that problems being revealed about the city’s emergency response system are being unfairly blamed on the OPD 911 call takers and dispatchers. They have been given untenable goals under the city’s current emergency communication center structure. The staffing and oversight shortage continue to become relevant while handling large incidents. They don’t have the technology they need to dispatch quickly as they could. And since they are on different CAD systems than the county, there are extra steps.

In 2020, local public safety leaders further deconsolidated 911 emergency communications, going against established best practices as recommended by federal authorities and national experts.   

Additionally, there is a shortage of 911 call takers and dispatchers nationwide. It takes significant training, but even with adequate training, a percentage of call takers can’t handle the stress of the job and quit.

This creates high demand for these vital workers. Last year, for example, the city of Louisville, Kentucky advertised a starting hourly rate of $24.48 for call takers and $27.25 for dispatchers. Louisville Metro offered a $8,000 hiring incentive paid in installments upon hiring.

The city currently has a job opening for a Dispatcher 1 position, and it is advertised starting at $40,000 annually without any signing bonus.

With rising public safety costs, evolving technologies, immense growth and demand on services, the “Gazette” once again urges county leaders to hold intergovernmental workshops to find ways to increase public safety levels of service by finding operational efficiencies across multiple agencies.

In addition to saving more lives and creating a better working environment for our community’s essential first responders, there also may be ways to save taxpayer dollars. But more importantly, the public will have an honest picture of the state of emergency response, the good as well as the bad.

_____________________________________

Mayor, Ben Marciano’s written statement to the “Gazette” issued by email Aug. 3, 2024:

With the increasing challenges associated with public safety, it’s important for our community to understand that occasional errors may occur. The Ocala Police Department, like every 911 answering center nationwide, is not exempt from this reality. 911 emergency call-taking is a highly technical field, and our operators undergo extensive training. They operate under significant pressure, navigating urgent and chaotic situations that can escalate quickly. Every decision made in those critical moments can greatly affect emergency response outcomes, and this responsibility is taken very seriously.

 The dedicated professionals at OPD’s 911 Communications Center are among the best in the field, consistently aiming for excellence with every call. Though we strive for precision in our emergency responses, we realize that absolute perfection is not realistic. We know that every second matters in protecting lives and property, which is what drives our commitment to continuously improve our protocols and learn from any mistakes to better prepare our team to handle future calls.

 In my time as mayor, I have witnessed firsthand the dedication of Chief Balken and the entire Ocala Police Department. Their commitment to our community’s safety is evident in everything they do. I trust in Chief Balken’s leadership in this matter and the measures OPD implements to enhance public safety. Our primary focus remains on ensuring the safety and well-being of our residents, and we truly appreciate the continued support and trust from the Ocala community.