Ulster County 911 center reports higher-than-normal call volume, launches voluntary Project Safe registry

Ulster CountyLaw Enforcement and Public Safety Committee members heard on Aug. 6 that the county911 center experienced higher-than-normal call volumes in July and has rolled out a voluntary registry, Project Safe, to give first responders quick access to critical information about residents who may need special assistance.

Director Erickson, the countyemergency management director, told the committee the center received 6,761 distinct 911 calls last month, an average of about 225 calls a day, and that 10-digit calls into the center numbered 5,014 (about 167 per day). He said the center answered an average of 392 calls a day, "which is above average because it's normally around 340." The director also provided a breakdown by response type: 2,688 EMS calls, 2,051 fire calls and 5,180 police calls, as reported to the committee.

The county launched Project Safe to allow families and individuals to register conditions such as autism spectrum disorder, Down syndrome, dementia, blindness or deafness and to store information "secured into our superior dispatch system," Director Erickson said. "We kicked that program off, and within a week, we already had 12 12 people that are registered, in the system." He said the registry will show up to dispatchers and, where agencies have vehicle viewing capability, to responders in the field.

Why it matters: higher call volumes can strain dispatch operations and affect response times; Project Safe is intended to give first responders immediate contextual information at the time of a call.

Committee members also discussed recent exercises and an outage at a neighboring county 911 center. Erickson said the county conducted a full-scale exercise in the town of Esopus with local first responders and is planning another for 2026; he said the county aims for one full-scale exercise each year.

On outages, Erickson described a July incident at Dutchess County's 911 center in which "a fiber line was... cut by a truck," taking that center offline for roughly seven hours. "It took their entire 9 1 1 center down. They could not take any 9 1 1 calls for, approximately 7 hours," Erickson said, and added that the event underscored the need for redundancy and prompted communication with the neighboring center.

Deputy Kenny, speaking for the sheriffoffice side of public safety operations, outlined a Safe Start to School traffic-safety initiative, saying it will combine an educational campaign about school zones with enforcement work by police agencies. "It's an educational campaign, ensuring that motorists know that school's opening," Deputy Kenny said, and added that the traffic-safety group will look at enforcement activity and camera use.

The committee also heard internal updates: Director Naccarato announced that Cindy King has been appointed deputy director after the retirement of Dana Ryan; she reported that HVAC upgrades at the county building are on schedule and staff vacancies are being filled. Erickson noted the county held a firefighter graduation that certified 62 volunteer firefighters and included an award for a life-saving rescue.

No formal committee action was taken on the operational update itself; several pending resolutions and contract items were considered separately later in the meeting.

Ending: Committee members thanked staff for the updates and scheduled a more detailed presentation next month on the recent full-scale exercise, with a follow-up promise that Deputy Director Madison would present on exercise outcomes and lessons learned.