Dispatching services for the Town of Williamston are now officially transferred to Anderson County 911 Center, according to Williamston Police Chief Tony Taylor. As of 7 p.m. Tuesday, calls to the Williamston Police Department dispatch center were not being answered by a dispatcher in Williamston, according to Chief Taylor.
Instead, calls now go to a consolidated dispatch center known as the Anderson County Emergency Services or Anderson County 911 Center.
The Anderson County 911 Center personnel also dispatch Police, Sheriff, Fire, and EMS for the cities and communities including Anderson, Belton, Honea Path, Iva, and all rural areas of Anderson County. The citizens of Anderson County are provided quick access to emergency services by a team of 50 personnel, Taylor said.
In the past, for non-emergency issues, Williamston residents were asked to call the Williamston Police Department non-emergency phone number at (864) 847-7425. With the 911 transfer, persons calling the non-emergency general administrative phone number will now have their calls answered by an Anderson County Telecommunicator who will be able to provide assistance as well.
Anderson County Telecommunicators perform various duties, such as receiving emergency and non-emergency calls for public service via computerized E-911 equipment from the Centralized Communications Center. Personnel dispatch appropriate resources utilizing a “computer aided dispatch (CAD) system” and automated mapping system. This helps their personnel get the correct location for dispatching aid.
Chief Taylor said the Williamston Police Department will have established business hours during the day from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. for administrative matters. Regular police service will continue 24 hours a day and 7 days a week, he said. Residents will be able to enter the inner lobby of the police department and use a call box to contact an officer if needed.
For non-emergency and administrative matters the Williamston Police Department will maintain a non-emergency phone number at (864) 847-5987. Citizens needing police, fire or emergency medical service should call 911.
According to Chief Taylor, the average caller should not notice a change when they call 911 to request emergency services. “ Emergency calls will be answered and dispatched by a highly trained telecommunicator – only,” he said. The only difference he said is, “they will be at Anderson County 911 Center as opposed to a dispatching service on-site at the Williamston Police Department.”
“We have planned for and anticipate the average caller noticing no significant changes to the way in which they request and receive emergency services,” Taylor said.
Until Tuesday, the town operated a 24 – 7 detention facility and communications center with salaries of $170,547. The change eliminated four jailer/dispatch positions with the town.
For more information about Anderson County Emergency Services visit their website at http://andersoncountyes.com.
