A Look Inside Kimball County Emergency Dispatch

The Kimball County Emergency Dispatch is open and staffed 24/7, 365 days a year, to field calls for various agencies making response times as quick as possible.

Last year, county dispatch answered 7,244 calls for Kimball Fire Department, Kimball ambulance, the Kimball Police Department, Bushnell Fire, Dix Fire and, of course, public calls. On occasion, they receive calls out of Banner County for fire response.

Dispatchers sit on the third floor of the Kimball County Courthouse and often are needed to calmly answer and respond to calls from excited, angry or hysterical individuals. Dispatchers are a special breed requiring multitasking and quick responses to high emergency situations.

Kimball County Emergency dispatchers work 10-hour shifts. In addition to their training on the 2-year-old Computer Aided Dispatch System, they require knowledge of other systems, such as the FBI system and state computer system. Other duties include booking individuals in/out of jail, regular jail checks, VIN checks, gun permits, and fixing and serving meals to those incarcerated.

When calls are received, they are recorded and documentation begins on the CAD system. Sheriff Dave Hottell emphasized the importance of the CAD system, describing it as very "user-friendly."

Ambulance personnel, sheriff and police vehicles are equipped with a computer linked directly to the CAD system, ensuring a streamlined dispatch process.

At the current time, Kimball County dispatch has five full-timers and is looking to hire a sixth person to complete their team.

Small counties and less populated areas have special challenges when dispatching and operating the county jail. They wear a variety of hats to make the system work. Hottell said, "They are doing their best in emergencies."