What does the "E" in E911 mean?

You may have noticed the "E" in E911 before, but not knowing what it means or mistaking it as an improper abbreviation for "Emergency".  Actually E911 means "Enhanced 911", a specially designed addition to basic 911 services which allows the 911 Dispatcher to not only see your telephone number but your address, name, as well as what hospital, law enforcement agency, and fire department to send to your home in an emergency.  This feature helps to save time during an emergency by eliminating the need to cross-reference caller information during most 911 calls.  When calling 911 the Dispatcher will still verify the displayed information with the caller to ensure emergency workers will respond to the correct location. 

Why did 911 change my address?

Before 911 went online a new addressing system was implemented which changed most existing addresses in Baxter County.  This change was made to allow emergency service units to find a caller's location easier and faster.  Almost every address in Baxter County is based on their distance from the county seat, The Baxter County Courthouse.  This helps to reduce any confusion that may arise when responders are responding to an emergency.  Through the cooperation of local utility companies, most new homes or businesses must be issued a 911 address before service to their location will be connected.  This ensures that everyone is given their unique address should they ever have to call 911 in an emergency.  These new addresses function as both the 911 and mailing address, and can be obtained by calling the 911 Office during business hours.

Does the E911 system work the same for a cellular phone as a regular phone?

No it does not work the same.  Due to the young age of domestic wireless communications, many technologies are just recently becoming available to the public.  When 911 is called from a cellular phone, the 911 dispatcher does not have immediate access to the type of information provided with a land-based phone line.  The 911 Dispatcher must attempt to gather as much information from the caller as possible to determine the caller's location based on road signs, road types, landmarks, towns, and even mailboxes. 

It is extremely important to be aware of your surroundings, and ready to answer a number of questions when calling 911 from a cell phone.  Pay attention to what roads you last turned onto or off of, note if you are on a gravel or paved road, and identify any landmarks you may have passed or can see.

When will 911 be able to locate me when calling from a cellular phone?

Baxter County 911 is currently able to identify a caller's cellular phone number; this is known as Phase I.  Phase II is the ability to identify a caller's location, this will be the next step in the process, and will be accomplished through the use of a highly publicized technology called Global Positioning System (GPS), and is expected to locate a caller's location on the earth within approximately 100 meters.  This service, when implemented will only work for cellular customers that purchase a cellular phone with the specially equipped GPS chip.  It is not known when Phase II service will be provided to cellular customers operating in Baxter County.

Many people are replacing their home phones with cellular phones because it's more affordable.  How will this affect me if I need to call 911?

While this has become a very popular decision by many people, it could also be a deadly one.  While we cannot require a Baxter County resident to maintain a land-based telephone, we do want them to know that by replacing their home phone with a cellular phone, they are losing the benefit of the E911 System, and delays may occur as a result of poor coverage, low batteries, or the caller not knowing their address.  These are things to keep in mind when making the decision to go completely wireless.

What are the sirens we sometimes hear during severe weather?

The Baxter County Office of Emergency Management (OEM) currently uses a siren system throughout the county.  This system is referred to as the Early Warning System.  The Early Warning System is a network of 30 sirens throughout the county that are activated by the 911 Dispatcher when a Tornado Warning is issued for Baxter County.

What do I do when I hear the siren?

First thing you should do is identify which siren tones you are hearing.  The siren alerting the citizens of a tornado warning will alternate between a high tone and a lower tone and sounds similar to a European siren.  If you hear this tone, take cover immediately!

If the siren you are hearing does not alternate tones and remains steady in tone, you are hearing the all-clear tones.  These tones are sounded when the Tornado Warning for Baxter County has expired.  There will sometimes be a delay in this all-clear siren if the weather conditions still appear unsafe.

Do not call 911 unless you have an emergency during a Tornado Warning.  The 911 Center experiences an extreme increase of 911 calls during tornados and severe weather, and cannot help those with actual emergencies if the 911 lines are busy with non-emergency calls.

What else should I know about the Early Warning System?

The Early Warning System in Baxter County is an outdoor system only, and commonly goes unheard when indoors.  Do not assume you will always hear these sirens when you are indoors or traveling in your vehicles.  It is suggested that you invest in a weather radio from a local retailer, but when doing so please make sure it receives the National Oceanographic and Aeronautics Association (NOAA) frequencies.  Some of these weather radios have a built in weather alert tone that will sound if severe weather occurs within the local stations broadcast range.  If you keep this radio in your home or vehicle, it may help you to identify severe weather when you are not able to hear the Early Warning System.

Functions of the 911 Office and Dispatch

The 911 Office is a very busy place; it is the backbone to the actual 911 Emergency Services.  Maps are made, maintained, updated and enhanced for Emergency Personnel; a database is maintained and updated daily.  When new addresses are needed for businesses or homeowners, 911 Personnel must physically drive to and locate where the new structure is, measurements are taken and drawn up, and various amounts of paperwork must be completed.  We are currently working on a GPS process that will eventually assist us when Baxter County is financially capable of the Phase II step of cellular service.  This is a long arduous process that will take much time and effort.

We maintain a high standard of relationships with all Emergency Response Organizations, Post Offices, Utility Companies, Media, Government Officials and Personnel.  These relationships ensure that our priority, the citizen, is our primary focus and concern for Emergency Services and Response.

The 911 Dispatchers currently page 18 Fire Departments including Mountain Home.  We assist Law Enforcement Dispatch, including Mountain Home, Baxter County Sheriff's Office and the surrounding municipalities.  The 911 Dispatcher must maintain professionalism while carrying out many duties and handling various calls.  Multi-tasking is essential in the Dispatcher environment, imagine talking to 4 or more separate people at the same time, keeping track of each conversation while typing all this data up, paging out the correct response units, noting times on paperwork and checking for information via the database or ACIC.  Okay, now throw in some emotional variables for some of these people, remember, we are dealing with an emergency.

911 Personnel are trained on site by a Certified Communications Training Officer; they are then required to go through a 40 hour study course created by a Nationally Recognized Telecommunicator Organizations.  They then must successfully pass to become a Certified 911 Dispatcher.  This in itself does not make a 911 Dispatcher, but assists them in their journey.  If they are successful to this point and show promise, they are then scheduled for further training which includes Advanced Law Enforcement Dispatch and Advanced Fire Service Dispatch.  Training does not ever end for Baxter County 911 Personnel, if we are to serve our citizens during their greatest moment of need; they deserve the finest we can provide. 

Rest assured, Baxter County 911 has the finest people taking care of citizens in their gravest moments, they genuinely care about you, your family and friends and are ready to answer your call 24 hours a day 7 days a week.

Conclusion

We have only gone over just a few of the responsibilities and duties of Baxter County 911 Personnel, if you are interested in getting to know us better or scheduling a tour, please contact the Baxter County 911 Office during business hours, Monday - Friday, 8:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. at 870-424-6119.

For more winter weather information, visit the NOAA's Storm Watch Web site at http://www.noaa.gov/stormwatch/

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Severe Weather Preparedness

Family Disaster Kit

Stormwatch - Current Weather Warning Information

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