911 Communications

The Kosciusko Communications Center handles all radio communications for Police, Fire and Emergency Medical Services in Kosciusko County. It was remodeled in 1999 and in August 2000 it combined with Warsaw Police Department to become Kosciusko Central Dispatch.

The communications center is located in a secure room within the Kosciusko County Justice Building. All 911 emergency telephone calls are answered at the communication center. Six radio consoles have the ability for communications with all police, fire and EMS agencies. Besides answering the 911 emergency calls the dispatchers also answer the police administrative lines for all police agencies.

All radio traffic, 911 calls and non-emergency calls are recorded on a DVD. Each dispatch position has message replay for immediate playback, while each DVD disc stores 60,000 to 63,000 calls on it, to include radio and telephone calls, the DVD's are filled and changed every 15 to 16 days. The DVD's are kept for a period of one year before being erased and then reused.

All calls are entered into a Computer Aided Dispatch System, (CADS), which immediately displays the residence on a mapping system. The mapping system will then display information that tells the communication officer which police, fire or EMS agency should respond to their address.

Each dispatch station has a Storm Sentry weather alert system, which pops up when severe weather is approaching the area. The dispatcher then sets off a radio tone that opens a monitor in schools and businesses in the county and the dispatcher puts out the warning over the radio so the schools and businesses can take appropriate action.