Pocono News Section

Clinton County 9-1-1 Malfunction Causes Scare

Clinton County 9-1-1 Malfunction Causes Scare - Wednesday, January 20, 2010 at 5:25PM EST

Reported by: Jeremy Deebel
Wednesday, Jan 20, 2010 @ 05:25pm EST
Lock Haven, Clinton County-

A computer failure at a county 9-1-1 center in central Pennsylvania has some people wondering if lives were put at risk.

Neighbors were shocked by word of the equipment malfunction at the Clinton County 9-1-1 Center over the weekend.

Jesse Kline, of Lock Haven, said, "Well it's scary to think that that could be our address and we had an emergency and somebody couldn't find us."

The component that allows dispatchers to see a caller's location and phone number failed on one of the center's three computers.

But emergency officials assure us that no lives were ever in danger.

Commissioner Adam Coleman noted, "There was never a time where, if you picked up your phone and had to call 9-1-1, there wasn't a time that nobody would have been there."

Emergency Services Director Kevin Fanning continued, "It's a 9-1-1 phone system and there are two additional steps in redundancy built into the system in the event that there is a failure in one of the components to allow and ensure that 9-1-1 calls still do come through."

It is, however, a problem that requires a quick fix. Just one issue- the company that sold the 9-1-1 center it's equipment is no longer in business.

That means the whole system will likely have to be replaced, at a cost of about $350,000.

Commissioners say it's a cost they're willing to swallow. They tell Eyewitness News they'll front all the money for the 9-1-1 center's system to be upgraded.

They'll eventually be reimbursed, at least partially, through the $1.50 surcharge county residents pay on their phone bill each month.

Coleman noted, "We want to make sure all the residents of Clinton County are safe, and that they feel safe at all times as well. So this was more or less a no-brain decision for us to say, 'Yeah, we need to fix this and we'll do whatever we have to do to fix it."

Kline added, "That type of spending of money, I think, is a very good idea. There are a lot of things I think they shouldn't spend money on. But our safety as citizens is very important. It should be top priority.”

Lack of space is also an issue at the 9-1-1 center. We're told it could be relocated in the future to a new storage building next to the Clinton County Correctional Facility.