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New high tech computer system unveiled for Umatilla and Morrow Counties public safety agencies
This Mission Critical System features Breakthrough ESRI Integrated CAD Map-Centric. Three (3) Dispatch Centers and eleven (11) Agencies share a fully redundant non-stop System serving nineteen (19) Police, Fire and EMS Sites.
Pendleton, Ore.--The Umatilla County Sheriff's Office (UCSO) and Computer Information Systems Inc. (CIS) at Skokie Illinois (a Chicago suburb) jointly announced today the start up of live operations of one of the nation's most advanced regional public safety computer systems. Funded by local agency funds and the Chemical Stockpile Emergency Preparedness Program (CSEPP), the new System supports both the local and unified public safety responses of Police, Fire, Emergency Medical Services (EMS) and Emergency Operations Centers in Umatilla and Morrow Counties.
While the housing of separate departments in a single facility has been known to cause personnel and managerial problems, UDOT and DPS have not encountered either of these stumbling blocks. Building on a historical relationship of UDOT and DPS cooperation on the roadways, the new technologies and TOC have instead produced a dynamic partnership for the command and control of traffic and traffic-related incidents. An important element in this relationship is that all personnel are cross-trained to operate all systems as required and the integrated systems are seamless.
The Umatilla CSEPP First Responder community determined the region would benefit from having a new CAD and Mapping system especially in coordination of an emergency response to a chemical release at the Umatilla Chemical Depot. The system is being utilized by the Umatilla County Sheriff's Office, Boardman Police Department, Boardman Fire Department, Hermiston Police Department, Hermiston Fire District, Morrow County Sheriff's Office, Pendleton Police Department, Pendleton Fire Department, Stanfield Police Department, Stanfield Fire District and Umatilla City Police Department. The community responders now have technology that will marshal and control all available resources into a common emergency response tracking system.
"This will be the second year in a row for the Umatilla County and Morrow County agencies to start up a new state-of-the-art system", stated Kathy Lieuallen, the Systems Project Director. The new Computer System comes on the heels of a regional 450 MHz Radio System that provides local and regional police and fire and EMS communications. Starting today, the region will have operational a common, consolidated, shared Public Safety CAD and Records Management Computer System.
"Our federal mandate was to implement a system that is Mission Critical. That is, a system that will still be operational when other systems may have failed and that has the capability to take over control of an agency's resources when that agency site has failed or must be evacuated. Our local mandate was to provide a computer system that, like radio, enabled them to operate both independently as well as collectively during regional emergencies and still share information while not losing normal day-to-day control" added Lieuallen. A year and a half long search and procurement process was started to find an organization that was not only delivering state-of-the-art public safety systems, but one that was also experienced in Mission Critical Systems serving numerous agencies spread over a region. The vendor had to satisfy federal requirements that included a mapping capability to enable local dispatchers and Emergency Operations Centers to track areas that are affected by disasters.
"Computer Information Systems Inc. (CIS) started work on the Umatilla-Morrow Counties Computer System Project in October 2003. The Project included both turnkey computer software and hardware. In October 2004 CIS installed the hardware at all sites and in November 2004 we trained forty-seven (47) dispatchers and one hundred forty-four (144) records entry clerks, deputies and police officers", stated Mike Yefsky, Director of Development at Computer Information Systems Inc. "The System has a Main Host Site in Umatilla County and a full backup Host Site in Morrow County. All nineteen (19) sites are linked to both Host Sites by secure data links. The three (3) Dispatch Centers at the Umatilla County Sheriff's Office and EOC, Morrow County Sheriff's Office and EOC and Hermiston Police Department also have full backup links to both Host Sites to assure Mission Critical operational capability under extreme conditions" added Mr. Yefsky.
"One feature of the System of major importance to our operation is the complete integration of mapping using our ESRI based maps with the CAD System. Dispatchers in each of our three (3) Dispatch Centers now have a map display showing where their own 9-1-1 calls are, where their police, fire and ambulance units are, and what calls each of these units are serving. During an emergency or any kind requiring mutual aid combined operation, any Dispatcher in the Umatilla Dispatch Center or Morrow Dispatch Center or Hermiston Dispatch Center can, with a 'Click', instantly display any or all other Dispatcher's maps with incidents and units. A dispatcher can combine any or all maps with their own. With this CAD System's Mapping, agencies now have an extraordinary tool that provides them instant map visualization of public safety operational situations in the field anywhere in our region" added Lt. Lieuallen. "Our EOCs can likewise display the region's operational situation. This regional mapping capability is a technology that we did not find available elsewhere during our search".
"The two (2) County Sheriff's Offices and nine (9) other police and fire departments were extremely supportive of the implementation of this Project. Their efforts made it possible for CIS to stage, test, and certify our racks of IBM Servers and other hardware prior to delivery and then send a CIS seven (7) man team to install, test and certify as completely operational the System's two (2) Host Systems and over one hundred (100) workstations at each and every agency within eight (8) days" said Mr. Yefsky. "Similarly, last month, with local cooperation for schedules, a CIS team of five (5) persons trained one hundred ninety-one (191) dispatchers and records entry persons".
This week of January 10, 2005 will see the System in full operation at each of the eleven (11) agencies in Umatilla County and Morrow County. The System also provides fully integrated communication with the Oregon Law Enforcement Data System and National Crime Information Center, Rip and Run Dispatch Printing for fire stations, mug shots, crime and accident scene photos, scanning, bar code, and related features and the new OUCR2 Crime Reports required by the State of Oregon.
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