The Knox County Board of Commissioners was informed that the 911 Dispatch Center received 3,906 computer-aided dispatch (CAD) calls in October, with 1,561 calls made to 911. This report was presented during their meeting on November 14.
Laura Webster, operations director of Knox County 911, provided a departmental update at the meeting. She said that the dispatch calls included 115 disturbances, 38 domestic violence incidents, 23 attempted or threatened suicides, 19 mental health-related issues, eight burglaries, five drug-related cases, and two drug overdoses. The dispatch center also managed 5,225 non-emergency calls and made 2,819 outgoing calls in October. According to Webster, Thursday was the peak day for 911 calls and the busiest hour was at 6 p.m.
Webster reported that she had completed ten interviews with two more scheduled for three open full-time dispatcher positions. "Assessment tests will be completed by three of the applicants before any final decision or offer is made," she said. Webster mentioned that some applicants are being considered for part-time roles. Filling these positions will fully staff the dispatch center with twenty full-time dispatchers. Contract negotiation meetings were planned for November 15 and November 25.
According to the Knox County website, Knox County 911 serves a population of approximately 60,921 people over an area of about 530 square miles. The consolidated dispatch facility is located in Mount Vernon and serves all or parts of twenty-two townships and seven villages. Knox County 911 is governed by the Board of Commissioners and was established in 1994.
