Quiambaug Fire Department wants to switch dispatchers

Stonington - The Quiambaug Fire Department has told the town and that it would like Groton Fire Alarm to begin dispatching its calls instead of the police department.

Quiambaug Fire Chief James McPherson Sr. said Monday that he would like the town to pay for the move as Quiambaug taxpayers are unlikely to foot the bill.

McPherson's Oct. 25 letter to First Selectmen Ed Haberek comes shortly after Stonington Ambulance announced that it would transfer its dispatch services from the police department to Groton Fire Alarm on or before Jan. 1, 2010, because of ongoing problems with police dispatch services.

Stonington Ambulance is asking the town to pay the $8,000 initial cost for the move and then $5,000 a year after that. That payment would come on top of the $25,000 the town gives Stonington Ambulance each year. The police department provides the dispatch services for free.

The Board of Finance is expected to discuss the ambulance request when it meets Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. in the police station community room. McPherson, who is also a member of Stonington Ambulance, did not say exactly how much money his department would need from the town.

In his letter to Haberek, McPherson said the move makes sense because the two ambulance companies that serve the Quiambaug District, Stonington and Mystic River, are dispatched by Groton Fire Alarm.

"It would be easier and safer for responding units to sign on with one dispatch center instead of trying to fumble around with the radio to switch channels," he wrote.

McPherson said it also makes sense to have all the town's fire departments and ambulance services, with the exception of the Pawcatuck Fire Department and Westerly Ambulance which are dispatched out of Westerly, be handled by Groton Fire Alarm. If Quiambaug makes the move, that would leave the Stonington Borough and Wequetequock fire departments being dispatched by the police department.

McPherson declined to discuss the concerns he has with the police dispatch center. Police Chief J. Darren Stewart and Haberek have said the problems mentioned by Stonington Ambulance and Quiambaug involve protocols and do not impact the safety of residents. Stewart and Haberek stressed the move should in no way be seen as an indication of the performance or quality of the police department's seven "highly trained and professional dispatchers."

McPherson said Groton Fire Alarm would be able to dispatch all the town's fire departments and ambulance companies at a fraction of the cost of hiring additional police department dispatchers.

He was referring to a proposal to hire two additional dispatchers for the police department so there would be two on duty at most times. Stewart said those dispatchers would be needed regardless of who dispatches emergency calls because dispatchers now have to offer emergency medical advice to 911 callers.

With the move, the police department would still receive 911 calls and dispatch a police officer but would then transfer the calls to Groton Fire Alarm, which would then dispatch Stonington Ambulance and Quiambaug. Stewart has said residents will not notice the change.

Stewart said he had hoped to work out any issues with Quiambaug and Stonington Ambulance.

"But it's their call if they want to go," he said.