VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla. – Volusia deputies are changing how they respond to 911 calls, and the sheriff said it will have a big impact on response time.
This is the first week Volusia County’s 911 center, and deputies are using a new “live 911″ program.
Now, instead of deputies waiting for dispatch to take a 911 call and then send them to a location, deputies will be able to hear the 911 call in real-time.
“The deputy hears the location, what the emergency is, the description of that person,” said Sheriff Mike Chitwood.
He said it will now get deputies to an emergency six minutes faster than they could before.
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“When you get that crime in progress call, the one thing you’re going to get right is the location. Sometimes, the descriptions aren’t always right, but the location, they know where you’re calling from,” Chitwood explained.
Before, dispatchers in the county’s 911 center would take the call and then send notes to the deputies telling them where to go and why.
Now, the dispatcher will still take the call and do the talking — but the deputies can listen in.
“I set up my live 911 to a 3-mile radius, and it follows my car,” said Deputy John Berard.
Berard called the system a game changer for safety, especially for a crime that’s in progress or major calls like an active shooter.
“We’re going to be hearing live updates from the actual victim or suspect, whoever calls, or witness in real-time,” he said.
Sheriff Chitwood told News 6 it will help deputies be better prepared for what they’re walking into at a scene.
“If somebody is on the phone with the call taker saying — God forbid it’s a school — ‘He’s in the cafeteria walking towards the gymnasium,’ and the deputies hear that, there is no doubt where they’re going,” he said.
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