Hartford's emergency telecommunications director says new radio system is live, plans more dispatcher hires and a workstation overhaul

Director Cavallo (Department of Emergency Services and Telecommunications) told the Management, Budget, and Government Accountability Committee that the city's new radio system and microwave network are operational and currently simulcasting with the old system. "The radio system is, it's up and operational right now," Cavallo said, and added that police radios were being programmed for a cutover targeted for May 19, with a fire cutover expected in June.

Cavallo described software and systems upgrades that aim to improve dispatch efficiency, including an upgrade to RapidSOS and improvements to the total-response software so pre-arrival medical advice and other prehospital information will automatically import into the CAD system. He said those integrations are important for quality assurance and for legal/medical recordkeeping.

On staffing, Cavallo said the center currently has about 20 fully trained dispatchers, three fully trained call takers, nine trainees and ten openings; he said classes to train new dispatchers are scheduled roughly every six to eight weeks and a new academy start had been projected for the week of May 11 (the timeline was slightly delayed). Cavallo said a state subsidy for emergency dispatch had increased to about $949,000 and that the subsidy calculation increased roughly 12.4%.

Councilmembers asked about the dispatch center's consoles and end-of-life workstations. Cavallo said the center has 12 active consoles on the floor plus two supervisor stations and that some older consoles are being cannibalized to keep the rest operational; he said he plans to bring a business case next year to overhaul the workstation floor.

No formal vote occurred during the presentation; Cavallo closed by thanking the committee and saying the department will return with capital recommendations as the radio cutovers and workstation planning continue.