By Cathy Dyson
The Free Lance-Star
FREDERICKSBURG, Va. — About one of every 10 emergency calls in King George County — concerning anything from possible heart attacks to structure fires — weren’t answered immediately last year because there weren’t enough people to man the phone lines.
King George Sheriff Steve Dempsey presented the startling statistic during a budget work session with the Board of Supervisors Thursday. He said there were 4,249 more 911 calls in 2015 than the year before, a 14-percent jump.
“The increase in calls has put us in a position to where we simply need more people,” the sheriff said. He emphasized that no emergencies went unanswered.
His message about needing more staff came through loud and clear. Supervisors didn’t take a formal vote, but committed to funding the request for two more communications officers -- who answer 911 calls -- and four more patrol deputies.
The new positions, along with equipment and cars for the deputies, would cost about $600,000, said Chairwoman Ruby Brabo. That would require a tax increase of about 2 1/2 cents, she said.
The current King George tax rate is 61 cents per $100 of assessed value.
The sheriff’s presentation was the first request in the annual budget process. The supervisors likely will hear pleas for more positions, programs and equipment from other county departments, including the School Board, which has asked to raise teacher salaries to make them more competitive with surrounding localities.
On the fire and rescue front, the Board of Supervisors postponed a request last year for six new emergency-service workers.
Even though the board doesn’t have a total picture of the fiscal 2017 budget, Brabo urged fellow members to commit to the new positions in the Sheriff’s Office.
“Everyone expects someone to answer when they call 911, and that is not currently happening for almost 11 percent of the calls,” she said. “Citizens need to understand the severity of the situation regarding the lack of manpower.”
The information about “abandoned calls” by busy 911 operators is the latest alarming report from the rural county. In recent years, the number of volunteer fire and rescue workers has dropped in King George--just as it’s done nationwide--but there’s also a high turnover of paid workers.
Last year during budget season, Chief David Moody reported that 25 percent of paid workers and 43 percent of volunteers left the department in 2014.
Residents and county officials alike have raised concerns about ambulances that don’t have enough staff members or calls answered by neighboring localities.
Sheriff Dempsey pointed out that half of 1,147 abandoned 911 calls were bounced to other phone lines in the office. Workers also attempt to call back those who don’t get through to a 911 dispatcher on the first call, he said.
“Still, you’re looking at a 5 or 5 1/2 percent abandoned rate,” said Supervisor Richard Granger. “I was disturbed by it.”
Dempsey said communications officers answer calls from people seeking help from a deputy or a dog catcher. They also field requests for the Virginia State Police and game officials, the Virginia Department of Transportation and animal control.
In terms of call volume, 7 p.m. is the busiest time of day and Tuesday is the busiest day of the week, he said.
The sheriff also cited the various duties deputies deal with, which go far beyond patrol.
His officers are responding to more traffic violations, taking more juveniles to facilities in Richmond or Prince William County and devoting more hours to an increasing number of calls related to mental-health issues.
King George deputies transported 58 people who had mental-health issues in 2014 and 85 last year. Each case, from response time to transport and paperwork, takes six to eight hours to complete, the sheriff said.
The increase speaks to “the stressful situations many people live in today,” the report stated.
King George has had four deputies per shift for seven years, but that doesn’t mean four officers are always out on patrol.
There were 728 shifts for patrol deputies from Dec. 1, 2014 to Nov. 30, 2015. But the county had minimum staffing, when only three duties were on the road, about 63 percent of the time.
Deputies were unable to be on the road because they were doing required training, out sick, on vacation or assigned court duty, which happens at least five days per month, the sheriff said.
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(c)2016 The Free Lance-Star (Fredericksburg, Va.)
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