PUNTA GORDA, Fla. — Charlotte County Sheriff Bill Prummell is expected to address Punta Gorda’s City Council on Wednesday over a controversial county take-over of the city’s 911 center.
On April 8, Charlotte County Commissioners delayed voting on the resolution to give Sheriff Prummell an opportunity to speak with the city leaders. If passed, it would make the county dispatch the initial answering point for all calls, even those from within the city of Punta Gorda.
Watch Fox 4's Alex Orenczuk report on a controversial proposal to change who answers 911 calls in Punta Gorda:
Calls for service within the city would then be transferred back to the city dispatchers, something the city’s Fire Chief Holden Gibbs told Fox 4 could add to response times.
“I don’t see any benefit for the citizens of Punta Gorda,” Fire Chief Holden Gibbs said. “My fear is that it might delay the amount of time for our apparatus to get out.”
According to Chief Gibbs, city firefighters can dispatch to an emergency in about 39 seconds, which he says is faster than the county’s dispatch time.
“I think they’re able to do it in about 1:19,” said Gibbs. “So, we’re about 40 seconds quicker than they are right now.”
Punta Gorda’s Police Chief Pam Smith also told Fox 4 the 911 call responsibility shift seems counter intuitive to providing better service for people in emergencies.
“Having 911 calls go to the sheriff’s office then back to us, that's going to actually increase our response time,” said Chief Smith. “It actually just doesn’t make a lot of sense to me.”
The proposal comes after the city council already unanimously voted against consolidating dispatches with the county in February. According to county commissioners during the April 8 meeting, pending legislation could soon require dispatches to consolidate anyway. Additionally, a recommendation by the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Commission, encourages dispatch centers to consolidate and eliminate transferring 911 calls in order to be more efficient.
Chief Smith, who is a member of the commission, said the way the city’s dispatch operates now is in compliance with the commission's recommendations.
“If you’re a primary PSAP (Public Safety Answering Point), you have to be able to dispatch to your first responders, in your jurisdiction,” said Chief Smith. “Because we dispatch to our police and our fire, we are in compliance."
She also noted that the city cannot dispatch ambulances, but the city's firefighters have advanced life support equipment and paramedics on their vehicles.
Another benefit of having city dispatcher's field calls from within the city, is the ability to change protocols to fit the needs of citizens, Chief Smith said.
"We can make changes on the fly, if we notice something is not working or if there's an issue, we can go in and address that immediately and make changes," said Chief Smith.
Sheriff Prummell, Chief Smith and Chief Holden are expected to address to proposal at Wednesday's city council meeting, which starts at 9 a.m. at the Burnt Store Presbyterian Church.
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