|
|
Kathy Rushworth
Chief of Communications |
The Fire Communications Division of the
Shreveport Fire Department is a nationally accredited agency
that provides a variety of support services to the
department and serves as Caddo Parish’s “Gateway to Public
Safety”.
The division is comprised of three
sections: Administration, Operations and Information
Technology. The Chief of Communications
get job description) is in
command, and responsible for all aspects of the division
operation.
The Administration Section is assigned two
Assistant Chief of Communications (get job description), one of which is in command of
operations, and the other is responsible for training and
quality assurance. One Management Assistant, responsible for
accreditation, and one Administrative Assistant provide
administrative support for the division.
The Information Technology Section consists
of two Information Technology Specialists, one responsible for
training and software issues and the other responsible for
hardware issues for the department.
The Operations section of the division is
made up of eight supervisors (FCOII)
(get FCOII job description) and 32 Fire
Communications Officers (FCOI) (get FCOI job description). All Fire Communications Officers
are required to be certified Basic Telecommunicators, and
Emergency Medical Dispatchers.
This division serves as the initial
recipient of all 9-1-1 calls originating within Caddo Parish.
They are also responsible for processing all emergency and
non-emergency requests for service received by the Shreveport
Fire Department and the Caddo 9-1-1 (go to Caddo911.com website) system. Personnel of this
division maintain a constant file on the location and status of
all fire personnel and equipment/apparatus, and when required,
relocate these resources to provide adequate protection to all
areas of the city. This division also provides dispatching
services for the eight Caddo Parish Fire Districts.
During the year 2008, Fire Communications
Officers processed over 240,000 incoming 9-1-1 calls and an
estimated 50,000 calls on the regular 7-digit telephone
numbers. Of those calls, over 37,000 resulted in actual events
within the city limits of Shreveport, and over 9,600 events for
the Caddo Parish Fire Districts.
The division has an annual operating budget
of 2.9 million dollars, of which 2.6 million is allocated for
personnel costs. The division offset some of the costs
associated with equipment purchases, equipment maintenance and
facility, by entering into cooperative agreements with other
agencies. This generates in excess of $265,000 in cash
reimbursements annually.
The Fire Communications Division received
national accreditation in July 2003 through the Commission on
Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA) Public Safety
Communication Center Accreditation process. Shreveport was the
first accredited communications center in the State of
Louisiana, and the only Fire Communications Center in the nation
to receive this coveted award. Members of the Communications
Division are active in a variety of professional organizations,
and work diligently to promote professional excellence in the
public safety communications industry. The division was
re-accredited in July, 2006. |
