The Central South Dakota Communications Center in Pierre is receiving new equipment thanks to some one-time funding from the State of South Dakota.
The 911 Coordination Board, administered by the South Dakota Department of Public Safety, has awarded the public safety dispatch center $108,388 to purchase new radios and computers, creating two additional work stations.
According to Cindy Gross, Communications Center Manager, they serve as the backup answering point for other dispatch and state radio centers. She says the additional work stations give them the ability to dedicate technology and staff to handle traffic when one of the other communications centers across the state needs an assist. Additionally, Gross says, if there was a large emergency within its service territory, the additional consoles could be dedicated specifically to that incident.
The Central South Dakota Communications Center is located in the George S. Mickelson Criminal Justice Center in Pierre. As a public safety answering point, it has two primary functions –911 dispatch and state radio dispatch.
Through its 911 dispatch function, the center receives emergency calls from Hughes, Hyde, Jones, Stanley and Sully counties. As a state radio dispatch center, it also dispatches local, state and federal entities to emergencies. Its state radio duties include dispatching emergency responders throughout central South Dakota, as well as throughout southeastern South Dakota.
Gross says people are generally surprised by the number of calls they get and the geographical reach they have. She says they’re fortunate to have a well-trained team who can handle the workload.
Last year (2020), Gross says the dispatch center fielded nearly 70,000 calls and dispatched nearly 58,000 calls for service.
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