Knox County 911 Operations Director Laura Webster informed the Board of Commissioners on December 11 that two trainees have successfully completed their public safety telecommunicator class.
According to a meeting video, Webster said that the two trainees will proceed to a Mercy Medical dispatch class and continue their training in the dispatch room.
Webster also mentioned that dispatchers are expected to handle more calls for service and total calls answered in 2025 than in previous years. Her report indicated that in November, there were 1,524 emergency calls received via 911, along with an additional 4,964 non-emergency calls. The report included data on 3,737 computer-aided dispatch calls. Specifically, there were 105 disturbance calls and 45 domestic violence calls dispatched. Calls concerning attempts or threats of suicide amounted to 30, accompanied by 22 mental health-related calls. Furthermore, eight burglary calls, eight drug overdose calls, and five drug-related calls were dispatched.
In the video, Webster noted that the Ohio 911 office has contacted Knox County regarding migration to Ohio's Next Generation 9-1-1 network. She explained that this transition would connect the county's 911 center with similar centers statewide and enable texting to 911 as part of the upgrade. The project details are currently under discussion, with migration anticipated by 2026.
