By Are you serious?

March 27, 2009 9:50 PM | Link to this

While I feel that Plummer’s public statements have been somewhat lacking, I have to disagree that this falls solely on his shoulders. What about AT&T? They are responsible for the system failure, and for not having the proper safeguards in place which alert them to exactly this kind of problem. What about the person Plummer put in charge of this project, who assured him both the facility and the dispatchers were ready? What about the person in charge of a computer system that doesn’t recognize addresses that are clearly within the jurisdiction they are dispatching for? (which a new dispatcher would have no clue if that was correct or not, hence the transfer to Dayton) There is a lot of blame to throw around in this situation, most of which I feel falls squarely on the tech and training people.

By Jim

March 27, 2009 9:58 PM | Link to this

While Plummer is certainly the one in charge now and during his campaign took credit for everything good (little as it was) that happened at the Sheriffs Office and no blame for anything bad that happened (all Vore’s Fault) let’s not forget that this was the egotist Vore’s baby. He tried to bully a lot of agencies into this fiasco and now they’ve been proven right. Lets not forget this in 4 years

By jon

March 27, 2009 10:42 PM | Link to this

How does a piece of equipment not operating correctly Sheriff Plummers fault? If you purchase a new car and it doesn’t operate correctly is it your fault? It only becomes your fault if you do nothing about it, and I’m sure that powers at be are fixing the problems and protocol that deal with the new 911 call center.

By Rafael Indi

March 28, 2009 1:58 AM | Link to this

Once again it we find another job that is too big for the boondogle that is law enforcement in Montgomery County. Government can’t manage the issues it has now, and Vore and Plummer what control of the entire county. Put your eggs in one basket, you’re gonna get nothing but a mess.

By Rapael Indi

March 28, 2009 2:02 AM | Link to this

Brookville Police Chief Roy McGill: “I have to say those people have been great. Any time an issue has come up, and there haven’t been many, they’ve been all over it getting things straightened out.” Wait ‘til you really start having issues with Tiburon, Chief. Then your “people” will disappear and you’ll never get an issue resolved; heck, they won’t even acknowledge it exists.

By Jim

March 28, 2009 9:08 AM | Link to this

An experienced dispatcher familiar with the area being dispatched for would not have needed a map, would not have needed a GPS equipped phone, would not have needed a computer, he would have dispatched the call and known where in his area the home was. This is exactly what the cities who wouldn’t join said would happen. The radio worked, he could have dispatched someone, the reliance on the computers just sets up for more trouble. Experienced dispatchers are the answer working for a community they know.

By Bill

March 28, 2009 9:26 AM | Link to this

Let us get the facts straight. First, Sheriff Vore did not start this process, the city managers organization did. By Ohio law, the Sheriff is in charge of the 911 center for a county unless the Sheriff gives it up. The equipment should have been tested more thoroughly and mock events should have been staged. I do not know if they were then why did this failure occur and not in the test stage. Sheriff Plummer and then Chief Deputy Plummer was involved with this project from the start and was the Vore’s representative. Vore has been gone for a year now; to imply he contributed to this particular debacle is absurd

By Calvin

March 28, 2009 9:41 AM | Link to this

The area dispatch was critiqued first for the point that the dispatchers wouldn’t know the area. The DDN and others pushing area center to subsidize the sheriff and city of Dayton updating their setups INSISTED that wouldn’t happen; it would be the most up-to-datest and bestest thing since sliced bread. Failed. As for the car having problems, before I took a new car on a trip to Williamsburg, I drove it locally and KNEW that it did everything right. I didn’t just jump into a new car and drive to Virginia. Our dispatch locally didn’t join and I thank them every day for the continued quick service and response they give our citizens, whether their cell phones have GPS or not, grin. I love the way they are blaming the cell phones as a distraction. But if the calls went through and someone talked to the caller, the addresses were given, and IF the people really were local, they knew to where to dispatch the equipment. Thanks to Centerville, Englewood, Huber Kettering, Moraine, Oakwood, Vandalia, and W. Carollton for NOT falling for the transfer of funds to subsidize Dayton. Every article the ones who didn’t join get the underhand reference that THEY are responsible for NOT joining. This is from a newspaper that shrank their page size from 12 inch to 11 inches and never mentioned it. It’s uneven reporting like the blame for noncooperating communities that’s causing the paper’s circulation to go down. I likely won’t renew next year. Oh, I noticed that Englewood responded to the fire even though they aren’t part of THE SYSTEM.

By David

March 28, 2009 9:53 AM | Link to this

What happened in this situation is exactly what police and firefighters feared when they opposed the new dispatch center. Jim is correct in saying a local dispatcher is unable to overcome a system crash. The county’s computers go down regularly (our department uses them) and our dispatchers utilize a hand written card system in stead. To my knowledge our dispatchers have never missed a call for any reason. It is unreasonable to think the regional dispatch can maintain a paper back-up sytem for all municipalities using the center. What is going to happen when the next large scale disaster such as a tornado of wide spread wind storm hits? DDN, local police and fire weren’t the only ones to oppose the RDC, Chief Odell and Chief Zickler of Kettering both officially opposed joining the center for various reasons.

By No Surprise

March 28, 2009 10:40 AM | Link to this

Technology is great, but with a dispatch operation you cnnot replace having experienced dispatchers that know their city. This consolidated dispatch will turn out to be a multimillion dollar disaster. All the citizens will get in returned is increased response times, to the wrong address. Followed by excuses from the politicians and the DDN that pushed this on everyone.

By Bill Vore Was the promoter

March 28, 2009 2:24 PM | Link to this

Bill, Vore travelled around trying to strong arm agencies into joining this train wreck. He sang the praises of it, he tried to get the area agencies all signed up for it, he said that the service would be better, more cost effective and more professional. None of that has happened. You didn’t see the City managers standing up singing the praises like Vore and Plummer did and have. I wouldn’t put Vore in charge of a 2 car parade and am not at all surprised he and now poor Phil have it all screwed up.

By JB

March 28, 2009 2:35 PM | Link to this

Sheriff Plummer cannot realistically believe the regional dispatch center is NOT TOTALLY his responsibility. The ground floor of this project was built on the premise the Sheriff of Montgomery County would be responsible for the day-to-day operation of the facility. This included all personnel functions. Sheriff Vore was adamant about this and received criticism for this. Vore believed he was following Ohio law, which establishes the Sheriff’s responsibilities for 911 emergency dispatch centers. Vore agreed to the formation of the Emergency Communications Policy Committee to oversee the operation of the center. It was agreed day-to-day operations fell under the responsibility of the Montgomery County Sheriff. All agencies including the Sheriff have an equal vote. They exercised this authority with the recent rate schedule. Sheriff Plummer cannot wash his hands nor look for scapegoats when something operationally goes wrong. This equipment must be tested absolutely before being utilized again. Sheriff Plummer must supervise this process and ensure the citizen of the county this problem is fixed. To all the citizens who are offering sincere and thoughtful input, keep it coming. To the cheap shot artists and malcontents, crawl back under your rocks. This is too important of a subject to allow you to muddy it.

By a 911 dispatcher

March 28, 2009 3:23 PM | Link to this

First of all, to Rapael Indi - Roy McGill is Chief of Germantown, not Brookville. I am a dispatcher at one of those 8 agencies that did not participate in the “Regional Dispatch Center”, and I think I can correctly speak for most of us that we knew something like this would eventually happen. There is no one specific thing that went wrong with this call, there were many contributing factors. What irks me the most is the excuse of “computer malfunction” - every dispatcher should have a general knowledge of what to do if the computer or computers are not working. Even if the address ends up being in another jurisdiction or the right equipment isn’t assigned - SOMEONE is responding. Goes back to the saying “when in doubt-send ‘em out”. A dispatcher will be faulted for NOT dispatching rather than dispatching in EVERY situation. As for not answering 911, that problem existed before moving to the new building. I have transferred calls to their center and been embarrassed when they weren’t answered, and found myself apologizing to the caller on their behalf. Non-emergency calls sometimes go unanswered as well, and citizens will call back wanting our agency to assist them because “no one is answering the phone”. There are other daily issues with the RDC including unfamiliarity with jurisdictional boundaries and the communities they dispatch, mis-transferred calls, mis-communicated calls for service, and sometimes just a general lack of communication in their own center. Going hand-in-hand with the mis-transferring of calls is the hastiness of transferring to another agency, which played a part with the first 911 call about the fire that was transferred to Dayton. The underlying message is “this has to be someone else’s problem”. That few extra seconds of time should be taken to actively listen to what the caller is telling you. No dispatcher or comm center is perfect, by any means, but when the community starts to realize a center’s shortcomings there is a problem. I take pride in what I do and go home (most days) satisfied that I did the best job I could. I think one of the worst feelings would be knowing the community has no faith in my center’s ability to get the job done. If my co-workers lost faith in my personal ability to do the job then I would know it is time for me to hang up my headset. Combined centers are not a new idea and are successfully operational in cities all over the world, but the keyword here is “successful”. One of the main reasons my agency did not take part was because of the decreased level of customer service they felt would inevitably occur. It is not smart to bargain with the citizen’s safety just to save the almighty dollar. After all, you get what you pay for. And lastly - shame on you DDN for slamming the RDC as much as you have after being one of their biggest promoters and so critical of the agencies that didn’t participate. Kind of hypocritcal, don’t you think?

By Former Dispatcher

March 28, 2009 3:27 PM | Link to this

Used to be a microphone attached to a radio attached to an antenna, simple. And it still could be if our law enforcement community didn’t think it needed computers in cars, what a BIG waste, the money spent and yet to be spent operating and maintaining this private internet system could be used instead to put more officers, firemen, and ems personnel on the streets, and maybe hire a few dispatcher. In afew years all of this TECHNOLOGY will be obsolete and they will spend millions of dollars again to upgrade and fail again. get real Sheriff Phil Taco Bell does not know what he is doing !!!

By Please Listen

March 28, 2009 4:31 PM | Link to this

To the Dayton Daily News Editorial Board and Cox Ohio: Shame Shame Shame. I wouldn’t want you as a political friend. First you bash any community for wanting to avoid this large regional center, and then you want to bash the Sheriff for failures. I would congratulate any local manager who listened to their dispatchers, Police and Fire Chiefs, who predicted the horror stories of misdirected calls and resources that a large center ran by one political official could have. These debacles are the exact reason many opted out. You said it was for organizations not wanting to lose jobs and for managers to celebrate their own little kingdoms. What you failed to notice is that many communities did join the Montgomery County radio platform to assure Interoperability. Most public safety organizations can communicate with each other seamlessly on a daily basis, hence they can communicate with each other in time of disaster. This interoperability was Public Safety concern #1, and was dealt with in a regional cooperative manner. What most managers were concerned about was having a seat at the table, a seat that enabled them to effect change when needed. The Sheriff at the time refused to relinquish his authority to a properly formed Council of Governments that would have given communities an equal seat at the table. So DDN, please let us all know what you would do if a ink supplier failed to supply you with ink, and that (god forbid) prevented you from making even one day of paper distribution. I bet you would want to be able to fire your supplier and hire a new company. These local managers want the same. Here a resident in Harrison Township lost a major portion of her property because of a failure in the system. Some of this failure was under the control of the Sheriff and some not. But Harrison Township is stuck. They can not just pack up and go somewhere else. The Harrison Township Trustees are stuck with the successes and failures of an elected official, who can only be removed every four years. This is the “control” some managers, thankfully, wanted to have. So how does Sheriff Plummer fix the problem? Relinquish control to the Commissioners and have them form a council of governments, where each community is represented and they hire professional communications managers who run the center. Within the next five years most, if not all would join. Seeing that many of these local centers already have the same if not better equipment than the Sheriffs communications center, there should not be any extra major capital expenditures within the time it would take to do this the RIGHT WAY

By Cost less

March 28, 2009 4:40 PM | Link to this

People need to keep this in kind when they hear how great this whole regional dispatch idea is for thier community. Smaller communities in the next couple years are not going to be able to pay for this dispatching, it’s cost is scheduled to almost double per call per department. Once they start laying off police officers and firefighters because they can’t afford to pay to dispatch them, oh boy then the Sheriff’s Office will run those departments too. Watch how the quality of service drops then. As for the human error it sounds like they need to address that also. Dispatching is a difficult job and a good dispatcher is worth his or her weight in gold, but see what happens when you have one that apparently doesn’t know what they are doing? And Dayton’s experienced dispatchers have to reapply to work at the new regional center, lose all their senority to the dispatcher involved in this ordeal or maybe not even get a job because they aren’t quailied to work for the Sheriff’s Office Regional Dispatch Center?

By Joe

March 28, 2009 5:03 PM | Link to this

I’m sure the DDN editorial board had, months ago, already written the “We Told You So” editorial claiming the great success of the regional dispatch center which they championed with great fervor. Based on the above editorial, it would seem that they are, now, less than impressed with the Sheriff and his ability to pull this thing off. (How many people told them that before??) Not surprisingly, Ellen Belcher, in the editorial, conveniently failed to mention the DDN and her own encouragement (previous articles) in regional dispatch. C’mon Belcher. Burp it up and tell everyone how proud you are that you had something to do with the new circus in town! Tell everyone how happy you are that your state-of-the-art, technological wonder played a major part in someone ending up in the hospital! How do the feathers taste?? From the editorial, “Some governments are going to be paying substantially more per emergency call than they bargained for, at least for now.” Sounds like “Bait and Switch” to me. People go to jail for that. A complete review/investigation of the operation is in order. And let the the Dayton Daily News pay for it!

By cas

March 28, 2009 5:10 PM | Link to this

There is no “board” that runs this dispatch center. There is a planning committee of elected officials from participating communities (but not all of them, as was suggested by the county’s consultant) that makes recommendations to the sheriff. And the sheriff is one of the members of that committee, along with a county commissioner, so at least one representative advises himself. But it is an advisory committee only, as are the two subcommittees, the technical and police and fire advisory committees. All final power and decision making rests with the sheriff. This was much debated from the beginning - and it’s also a primary reason many communities chose not to join. They had no real way to control operation or costs. They were to be contracting agencies with a single source to contract with. They wouldn’t have equity in the center’s assets or real voting power in decisions. They could only vote (if they had a representative on the committee) to recommend something to the sheriff. Despite that being a sticking point, the county refused to have the sheriff waive his authority to head a regional dispatch as granted under the O.R.C., so it could be run by a council of governments, as they are elsewhere in Ohio. The county claimed it was illegal (not with the waiver) and that it would significantly raise the cost per call, although why that would be is unclear. But now it seems that while the county is unwilling to share power and control in this so-called regional effort, accountability, blame and cost are other matters altogether.

By SomeoneInTheKnow

March 28, 2009 6:28 PM | Link to this

The stupidity on here is mind boggling, and I find it particularly offensive because it is from people who don’t know one stinking thing they are talking about! Misdirected calls are part of dispatch, unfortunately, and they happen in ALL centers, even your hallowed Kettering. There were multiple calls to report the fire, and they all gave MULTIPLE addresses. Hard to send equipment when you don’t know where to send them, and most calls that did come through reported smoke in the area, not a fire, and not a house on fire. Where is the blame for the homeowner, who FELL ASLEEP while cooking?? The house could have gone up just as fast and been a total loss regardless of how soon the fire dept was dispatched. No, the county’s computers do not go down regularly, and if they did, the RDC can dispatch off cards, just like the other centers. There is an saying in dispatch “If YOU don’t know where you are, I most certainly don’t know, and can’t help you until we figure it out.” Landline 911 and new cellphone locating have made calling as idiot proof as possible, but you can’t help everyone if they just don’t know. What happened was unfortunate, no one disputes that, but there was a multitude of factors here that contributed to this, technology being one of them. Does anyone really think that this new center was just slapped together and the doors thrown open on a whim?? Those systems were tested, and re-tested, and then tested some more. It is extremely frustrating for everyone that the problem has not been located and isolated, and definitely felt the most by the dispatchers themselves. The phone company and everyone involved is working overtime, very very hard, to make sure this does not happen again. Again, I invite anyone who thinks they can do better to step up, these men and women go through 6+ months of training, and every year there training is updated and renewed, retraining as technology and situations change. Less than 2 out of 5 hired by the Sheriff’s office make their probationary period at the dispatch center, because they don’t have the “right stuff”, which should tell you how stringent and high the standards are. I find it laughable that people are scoffing at the Sheriff’s office opening the Regional Dispatch Center, the Sheriff’s office was regional years ago, dispatching for over 15 agencies in the county before the idea was ever born. And get your comments right Lutz, they were dispatching fire depts out of the Sheriff’s office years before you came on board. Your constant and ever changing demands is one reason Dayton was glad to see the last of your large backside. The regional dispatch center never sbut down since its opening Thursday, and has no reason to. Everything else is churning right along perfectly, as predicted. Anyone can sit back on their smug little butts and point fingers and flap their traps when something goes wrong, but I know from lots of stories from my other half, no one would have batted an eye or even bothered to say thanks if that woman’s home and pets had been save, because after all, they are doing what they are paid to do, right?

By Happy in Huber

March 28, 2009 7:02 PM | Link to this

Hey Dayton Daily News. YOU where the big push to support this joke of a dispatch center!. If you really wanted to do a truthful story, why dont you go and look at this so called “great” equipment in the sheriff’s center? Englewood, Vandalia, and Huber Heights dispatch centers are FAR better equipped. The poor dispatchers in the county center are the least paid and most understaffed in the area. All the county wants is a warm body to sit in a seat so they can say they are trained. do you job DDN investigate not just pump up the idea and then jump ship.

By Starcastic

March 28, 2009 7:08 PM | Link to this

Predictably most of you fools and complainers miss the point here. No fire went unnoticed becuse “nobody answered the phones”. 5, 13 or 20 people call simultaneously to report an incident, if even ONE is answered (and here we far surpassed that number) then the system has worked. The problem was dispatch related, and frankly couldve happened in even a non-regional center with a new employee or in this instance also a caller giving a wrong address. Wah, lets whine because the “phone wasnt answered”. It was, nobody was unaware there was a fire, THAT is what matters.

By Edward

March 28, 2009 7:14 PM | Link to this

If it’s now acceptable to have dispatchers who have no idea of the area dispatching from distant areas, why not outsource dispatch to India? Most other customer service call centers are located in India, why not 911? After listening to the 911 tapes I think they could do as well. Also, the calls were making it to the 911 center—that’s how they ended up being recorded and we are able to listen to the ringing sound the callers heard. This wasn’t a recording made by the caller, it was made by the dispatch center. Did someone just forget to turn the ringer on or was everyone so overwhelmed that they were letting phones just ring?

By whodey

March 28, 2009 7:45 PM | Link to this

A good dispatcher doesn’t need to a computer program or GPS to know where a street is or who’s jurisdiction it is to send the appropriate response. My wife is a dispatcher and a damn good one to boot. She can tell a citizen or officer the cross street and can give someone directions to a street without even going to a map. It amazes me, but that is her job and she takes pride in it. She knows that at any moment it can be a life or death situation and she needs to be on top of it. The computers are just there as another tool she can use, but ultimately she is the best piece of equipment in a communications center, not the computers, they are just the fluff. Sure GPS is great, but it is mainly used to see what unit is closest to assist and now with the new technology can aid in figuring out where someone is calling from on 911, if the cell phone is equipped. MCSO is really lacking in some training. It seems as if the dispatchers are just getting lost in the mix and maybe the county needs to spend some of that money they are overcharging agencies on training for those dispatchers. I know that my wife appreciated being able to go to trainings several times a year.

By Just say no...to regional dispatch

March 28, 2009 7:48 PM | Link to this

As a Butler Twp. resident I pray for the day that Butler Twp PD leaves montgomery county. Which will be soon from what I hear. I just hope it will be to Vandalia. Makes sense since the cities are sharing resources when it comes to the fire department. Last thing we need is for departments that are sharing resources be dispatched by 2 separate agencies. What a mess that will be and a waste of money too i feel.

By shaking my head

March 28, 2009 8:11 PM | Link to this

OMG Someoneintheknow…. you really DON’T know…. a GOOD dispatcher works to find out where the problem is (using multiple resources if necessary) and doesn’t automatically assume that all calls MUST be Dayton. And do tell… how many ways can you spell Wheeler??

By Finger Pointers Unite

March 28, 2009 8:34 PM | Link to this

amazing all the finger pointing and second guessing going on, and guess who is pulling all the strings?? yep fans, Ellen BELCHer. She is frothing at the mouth over this and cannot contain herself. Her hubby, who happens to be Judge langer obviously have an axe to grind with MCSO (gee..could be a demoncrat thing). Come on Ellen, stop the nonsense and become part of the solution instead of trying to divide. Afterall, you at the DDN pressed this initiative forward and now you are trying to back away from a great concept. That is weak and lacks courage.

By Geez

March 28, 2009 8:44 PM | Link to this

Someone in the know. You are the problem. You or someone you are close to has something to do with the RDC. Reading these comments, many seem like they have some knowledge of the business. You are the type that needs to find a new job. Blaming the lady who fell asleep for her house burning down? Give me a nredk, public safety personnel are in place for these people . Exact addresses? What dispatcher routinely enjoys a calm caller with perfect information, if someone at the RDC would have gotten on the fire channel and said ” Harrison there is a fire on Wheeler”, those guys would have found the smoke rising in the air. Someone in the know, get a new job or realize the person giving you your information is a lazy and content person who shouldn’t have the priviledge of helping others.

By red

March 28, 2009 9:34 PM | Link to this

Let’s see, the liberal, left wing paper called the DDN, says the local sheriff, a conservative republican is repsonsible for the technology glich? Classic, hey Belcher, I’ll be calling you the next time my paper is printed crooked or doesn’t arrive, or has a mistake and telling you how stupid you are then. Plummer is a fine man, who controls over 470 jobs and is well liked. He is an expert in lawn enforcement, not phone lines. Yes, ultimately its his fault, but to rub it in like that instead of standing up for him a bit, is typical of a liberal. This is why our country is in the mess its in, too much finger pointing and not enough team work and support and seeking for understanding. We just go straight for the insults. BTW, I will remind you Plummer received more votes than any other canidate in montgomer county, including Obama. Think about that.

By jim

March 28, 2009 10:12 PM | Link to this

Well how many excuses are going to come out now? 10pm news has the latest culprit as an overload of phone calls. Are you kidding me? A multi million dollar, high tech operation that gets a few phone calls at one time and that craps the system? I don’t blame the agencies who refused to join for refusing. The people paying the taxes for the services want to know they have someone on the other end who is in it with them, in the same area, knowing the streets, know many times the personal situations of the citizens. This outsourced system has depersonalized the responses. Many people living in the various cities have situations the dispatchers know about and can help with and can do it without sending a cop or a fireman sometimes. The departments who have gone to the outsourced dispatch center, do they still answer non emergency phone calls or are all calls answered by the center? If the cities are getting hit big money per dispatch are they trying to keep people from calling in? Are the charges per dispatch event or per telephone call? Someone tell Phil to put someone on who can speak intelligently about the system, his stumbling around for words just isn’t helping.

By Fred

March 28, 2009 10:21 PM | Link to this

Well, Well, Well, it looks like all the hoopla about not joining because a COG wasn’t in place, or the overpaid dispatchers at Kettering knew all along something like this was going happen is just a bunch of baloney. According to the latest news report this was all caused by an EQUIPMENT FAILURE. This bickering is just another reason the REGION is going down the toilet. Instead of working together during times of crisis, the naysayers sharpen their knives and then rush to stick them in the back of person or organization they disagree. This was not the Sheriff’s fault or his personnel or the policies governing the RDC, it was an EQUIPMENT FAILURE. As Miamisburg Mayor Church opined in a letter to the editor, it was a good thing the RDC was there when several of the other dispatch centers in the areas went off the air due to failure. The RDC’s infrastructure is the best in the area and the next regionwide emergency will prove it.

By Joe

March 28, 2009 10:30 PM | Link to this

If bigger were better we’d have a statewide 911 dispatch center. That would make sense. Right Dayton Daily News? Technology exists to be able to do that. Right Dayton Daily News? Think of all the money that would be saved. Right Dayton Daily News? Those were your reasons, among others, for pushing regional dispatch. Now. Let’s turn the table. Technologically and financially it would probably make sense to publish the Dayton Daily News out of, hmmm, heck, let’s say, Atlanta! You know. Where your bosses work. Cox could eliminate a lot of unnecessary overhead that way. You know. Dead weight. Right Ms. Belcher? What? That’s a bad idea? Wouldn’t work? Yeah? I thought consolidation of operations to one regional center would be good for the paper. Oh…oh…there are many reasons not publish from a regional center? I see. The paper would lose touch with the area it serves. But wait. It’s probably being done like that somewhere in the world! No way? It wouldn’t work? Gotcha. Those…those…those people in Atlanta wouldn’t have a clue about the intricacies of the Dayton region. Even though it seems to be a great thing, there’s no way people in Atlanta could cover the news about the Dayton area the way someone locally based could? (Scratching my head) I get it now! When it affects you personally, then it’s different. WOW! That’s just the way it is with 911. Just because something CAN be done doesn’t always mean it SHOULD be done. Atlanta isn’t a good idea, and neither is statewide or even regional 911. Bigger isn’t necessarily better. Right Dayton Daily News?

By Chuck

March 29, 2009 12:08 AM | Link to this

Someone made a comment about only being able to solve the problem of who is the Sheriff Every Four years. Last time I checked a recall petition could remove Phil from office, if the people (like me) who are all upset would really do something like start a petition to recall Sheriff Plummer I would be right there to help, but everyone wants to set here and complain and in a year it will all be forgotten, except maybe for the HUGH law suit the County or all of the agencies involved may face. If you want to get the Dave Vore approach to law enforcement out of office start a recall petition…

By Hey fred

March 29, 2009 12:34 AM | Link to this

Fred, did you listen to the tapes? The dispatcher dropped the ball. The first phone call went through, for being freightenef and exited the caller clearly said the fire is on Wheeler. Within 3 seconds on Google you could see where Wheeler us. This mistake, while a human error, occurs on a routine basis at the RDC, this one was exploited by the ” equiipment failure”. Mistakes such as this, blindly transferring or mere discredit of callers shouldn’t occur as often as they do, and were predicted by many. So Fred listen to the tape and tell us what the glitch was.

By Chief Deputy Mike Nolan

March 29, 2009 12:43 AM | Link to this

For anyone to think that opening up a highly technical center would go perfectly is either naive or stupid. To blame Sheriff Plummer is even more ludicrous. What is more important is that the members of the Sheriff’s Office had the foresight to staff the back -up center should such a problem occur when “the swith was thrown.” Other dispatch centers have had their problems in the past and the plan to continue service by switching to another agency worked well. We should appreciate the dedication of the employees who have worked relentless hours with AT&T to find the problem of this glitch, but, we should thank Sheriff Plummer and his staff assigned to the RDC for having the foresight to have the “back-up center” fully staffed, anticipating a problem when the new center opened. I always say that whenyou point a finger, remember, you have three pointing back at you. But someone better than I said, “Let he who is without sin cast the first stone.” The Dayton Daily News makes many mistakes but can retract those regularly on page 10A. We, the members of the Sheriff’s office, can only hope to work through the problems, make corrections, and pray for the victims on Wheeler Ave.

By Tim

March 29, 2009 8:46 AM | Link to this

I recently called the Harrison Township non-emergency # to convey a concern about suspicious activity in my neighborhood. I got voicemail. I left a message with my name and phone number. I never received a return phone call. I live off of Nottingham. You would think in this neighborhood you would at least get a return phone call.

By Finger pointers Unite Part 2

March 29, 2009 9:04 AM | Link to this

Tim, you are now just lying and trying to spread a lie to get everyone “fired” up, which in Harrison, all you have to do is to cook some grease for dinner… Record it and post it or stop being dishonest..why wouldn’t you call 911 anyway on a suspicious person? obviously you didn’t think enough that it warranted a 911 call. Next time, call CHUCK IN MORAINE, this way you can sign up for the recall at the same time….

By Phil

March 29, 2009 9:09 AM | Link to this

Should never bought a switch from a bankrupt Canadian company, namely Nortel! With AT&T as the techs, why didn’t they buy a Lucent switch? Maybe the Nortel was a ‘cheaper’ deal, loaded with kick backs?

By davidss2

March 29, 2009 9:21 AM | Link to this

Funny how the DDN plays things. Just like Saturday’s editorial (which hasn’t made it here for critique) about how poor Obama has been mischaracterized and making excuses for his criticisms from elected officials. He runs up deficit by tens of trillions of 10 years and the DDN editorializes about his wanting to cut the deficit. Gimme a break. And now the DDN was all in favor of regional dispatch (maybe that was to cover the wide regions to which they have moved their newspaper operation instead of developing downtown which they are so in favor of doing, for others). But as soon as something goes wrong it’s the Republican’s fault. Heheee. Never waste a good crisis for political gain (that’s why the Obama tie-in at the beginning). The DDN will now use this to try to control even more what happens at the favored regional center. Maybe the Center can install high speed copiers and they can print the DDN on standard office size paper. The width of the paper dropped from 11 to 10 inches with no mention in the DDn of their decrease in news area. Regionalism means the DDN needs to put away the Democrat Hat and work for ALL the people in the county. I’m very happy we aren’t a part of the dispatch mess. We are very well protected and I want it to stay that way. Cities who signed up should be able to withdraw from the regional dispatch.

By Terry Freshwater

March 29, 2009 10:20 AM | Link to this

I’m amazed that the regional 911 center crashed and burned on the first day of operation. Today’s paper says the system got overloaded when numerous 911 calls came in at the same time. Duh!! You would think the vendor would have a computer simulator that could generate numerous 911 calls at the same time to test the hardware and software. After all in a big emergency the 911 center will be swamped with 911 calls and the telephone switch should handle it. Someone is not keeping their eye on the ball.

By BEN

March 29, 2009 10:57 AM | Link to this

CHUCK, Cowards like you have no intention of starting a petition or any other type of action against Sheriff Plummer. Why don’t you go the to police academy and become a law enforcement officer. Then you can run for Sheriff and do it your way, which I am sure is much BETTER than Sheriff Plummer’s. I promise the minute you publicly start your petition I will sign it. But we both know you have no intention of backing up your mouth. Learn the facts, this was an equipment failure due to no fault of Sheriff Plummer or the Sheriff’s staff. Now go back under your rock.

By Fred

March 29, 2009 11:02 AM | Link to this

Hey Fred, by your continued denial that the root of the problem was and EQUIPMENT FAILURE you verify my belief you are one of those over paid kettering dispatchers only interested in protecting your pud job and shouting “i told you so, i told you so” Haven’t heard you comment about when your system went down and the county covered your butts during the windstorm, heh!

By X

March 29, 2009 11:56 AM | Link to this

OK “by Fred”, I can’t just sit here and let you tell flat out lies. I am one of those “overpaid” Kettering dispatchers who happened to work the day of the windstorm. Why you insist on fabricating a story about our system going down during the windstorm is beyond me. I sat at a console and answered a phone for 8 hours straight in what turned out to be one of my most challenging days as a dispatcher (amazingly, no ones house burnt down!). I have a sneaking suspicion that you dispatch for the county and your only defense for this “equipment malfunction” is to attack others in your profession who are lucky enough not to be in your unfortunate position. Keep your head up and your eyes open, you never know when Kettering will be hiring.

By former dispatcher

March 29, 2009 2:11 PM | Link to this

I would just like to say to all those Monday morning quarterbacks, who have no idea what they are talking about, that only those who have “never” made a mistake should complain. !!!!. We should be thankful that no one was killed, but there will always be mistakes, Think about all the lives that were saved. Don’t dwell on the negative

By CG

March 29, 2009 4:26 PM | Link to this

Enough blaming! Get it fixed, support the family, build them a home, and learn from what happened. It could have been any of us.

By Tim

March 29, 2009 4:42 PM | Link to this

Regional dispatch centers don’t work for pizza places, what makes them think they’ll work for 911? I’m glad I live in an area not participating…

By Family?

March 29, 2009 4:56 PM | Link to this

And you call yourselves brothers and and sisters in law enforcement? Funny how you always eat your own kind.

By Jim

March 29, 2009 5:27 PM | Link to this

If the RDC is run as poorly as he county jail is, be prepared for these events to happen weekly. Supervision is one of the really lacking areas at the MCSO and one that no one has addressed as far as I can tell.

By What about DDN?

March 29, 2009 9:12 PM | Link to this

Well if the DDN is going to pass out blame, why don’t they start with themself. If I remember correctly, they were the biggest advocate for the county wide dispatch. That was after Kettering, Moraine and Centerville told them it was a bad idea. Com on DDN step up to the plate and shoulder some of the blame.

By Joe

March 29, 2009 9:55 PM | Link to this

To CG: As you said, “It could have been any of us.” That’s the problem!

By Tim

March 30, 2009 7:52 AM | Link to this

Fingerpointers united pt 2 does not know me, nor my intentions. Finger pointer must have his hand in someone’s pocket. You just don’t want to hear the truth. Call 911? I thought that was for emergencies? All emergencies except for house fires. At least I have the courage to use my first name in the blog. Did your mother call you Fingerpointer?

By Cindy

March 30, 2009 8:20 AM | Link to this

Gary, Where have you been for the last 5 years? Please visit www.mcohio.org/sheriff/pal/index.html I know for a fact Sheriff Plummer while still a Major volunteered hours of his personal time to help the youth in this community. Fire victims included as we traveled over half hour away and rented a tractor trailer to gather clothing and furniture for the fire victims in Northland. Oh and this was on a Saturday when he could have been home with his family. And then there was the Holidays while you were with your family resting. He was out in the rain and snow taking food to the homes of those who wouldnt have a holiday. And at that time running for Sheriff never crossed his mind.He gave because he saw the need to give.Oh and did you know he took his family with him everywhere and to every home so they would learn to be givers too? I guess you missed that didnt you!

By tech

March 30, 2009 8:49 AM | Link to this

Hey Phil,the problem may have not been in the PBX but possibly the porting of the numbers from the CO during cutover.

By Gary

March 30, 2009 8:53 AM | Link to this

Gary, you have no idea what you are talking about. Both Vore and Plummer always had and have an open door policy for employees. They just don’t cowtow to the unions. Their philosophy is the citizens of the county are first in the food chain. Maybe you are one of those malcontents who started and signed a petition of no confidence against Sheriff Haines in the early 90’s stating he was ruining the Sheriff’s Office. You probably did not work at the SO or even know Vore or Plummer. Secondly, provide specifics how the jail is being run poorly. I find it absurd malcontents like you can make statements about an organization that is accredited by 3 Professional Law Enforcement Commissions. It doesn’t sound like the agency is poorly run to me. If it were I doubt Vore and Plummer would have won their elections by such over whelming majorities. I worked at the SO until 2004 when I took a SERVICE retirement. You sound like one of those employees Vore rightfully fired. Crawl back under your rock and let the professionals get this problem fixed. Vore nor Plummer caused the telephone system to malfunction. Wake up.

By Bill

February 14, 2010 11:55 AM | Link to this

Sheriff Phil Plummer has earned his defeat in 2012. He failed when he had a personal relationship with a female subordinate who was subsequently convicted of Theft in Office. He failed when he promoted Mike Nolan as his Chief Deputy. He failed to properly test equipment in the new 911 center resulting in a debacle that injured an elderly lady in a fire. He failed to remove his sister from the appraisal unit after his election and he failed when foreclosure records were sent to be destroyed.

By Joe

March 12, 2010 9:31 PM | Link to this

Trying to re-direct the conversation away from Phil Plummer is a total “groupie” ploy. Plummer has demonstrated repeatedly he is incapable of leading the Sheriff’s Office and is way over his head. It started in the early 2000’s when he used poor judgement in his personal-professional life with subordinate. It has gone down hill from there, dispatch, sister who was his appraiser making 150K+, “mistake” over destroying foreclosure info, blames everyone for his mistakes, etc… Time for a change

By Bill

June 12, 2010 3:45 PM | Link to this

Sheriff Phil Plummers debacles have earned his defeat in 2012. Stand by folks because there are more instances of mismanagement yet to be exposed, starting with his former Chief Deputy Mike Nolan.