SHERIFF ANNOUNCES THE SPLITTING OF THE 9-1-1 CENTER INTO TWO LOCATIONS AS A PRECAUTION DUE TO COVID-19 PANDEMIC
Marion County Sheriff Tim Bailey announced today that the 9-1-1 dispatch center, located in the Marion County Building, will be split into two separate locations as a preventative measure during the pandemic emergency.
Sheriff Bailey said, “My overwhelming concern is that the 9-1-1 center, which is the lifeline of the community in an emergency, could fall victim tothe COVID-19 virus.” While some of the deputies and support staff are working remotely, the dispatchers cannot work from home.
The sheriff went on to say that while we have staff members cross trained as dispatchers, we are not likely to be able to replace all dispatchers who might be in quarantine or in the hospital. While there is a contingency plan to operate during short term outages such as equipment failures, Bailey said we would not be able to stand a complete shutdown for months. By splitting off one group of dispatchers and relocating them to the sheriff’s office on Executive Drive, the hope is we will reduce the likelihood of the entire staff becoming exposed to COVID-19. As the Marion County Commissioners explore re-opening the county building to the public, Bailey said he is concerned for the health of his dispatchers and does not want to risk the possibility of exposing this critical group to COVID-19. The sheriff’s office on Executive Drive is closed to the public at the present time and potential exposure to the virus is limited.
At the present time, the communications center is fully staffed and operating 24 hours a day as normal. We do not anticipate any disruption of service during this move. Bailey went on to say “As we have seen from the pandemic reaching into the prisons and the positive test results and quarantine of a large number of prison guards, we cannot afford to have this strike the 9-1-1 communications center.” This is a preventative move.
The estimated cost of the move will be approximately $56,000.00 which will largely be for the infrastructure. The sheriff’s staff will complete the physical move of the equipment. There will be no monies coming from the county general fund to pay for the relocation. Bailey said the cost of the move will be from grant funds provided by the U.S. Department of Justice. The monies come from an emergency appropriation of $850 million made available to help public safety agencies address the COVID-19 pandemic. Marion County was one of 18 counties in Ohio to receive funds.
Sheriff Bailey stated “We must take appropriate measures to protect our staff so we can continue to protect the public we serve.”