Sep. 1—WILLIMANTIC — Callers are sometimes in situations where they can not safely speak to a dispatcher on the phone. New software obtained by the Willimantic dispatch center can be used to tap into a caller's cell phone and see live video of the scene without speaking to the caller.
Using their expertise, dispatchers then assess the situation and determine what resources are needed.
"This is going to give us the ability to size- up a scene quicker," said Kristin Vargas, the executive administrator of the Willimantic dispatch center.
The software, "Prepared Live 911," is available for free to dispatch centers through the internet. Willimantic dispatchers went live with the software on Aug. 18.
The software is useful in a wide variety of scenarios.
"We attempted to use it for the Ladd's fire, but unfortunately, the caller didn't have good cell service," Vargas said. She was referring to the fire on Aug. 20 at Ladd's Garden Center in South Windham.
No one was injured during that fire, which destroyed a house being used to store garden fixtures and other items. The dispatch center handles Willimantic Police and Willimantic Fire Department calls, as well as calls for the Windham Center, South Windham and North Windham Fire Departments.
It also handles calls for the town of Franklin, as well as running the afterhours line for the public works, water, sewer and animal control departments.
Vargas said dispatchers felt the software would be beneficial for them to use given the rural nature of the towns it serves. The software is useful when responding to someone out on one of the trails in town.
" If they're lost, we can guide them out," Vargas said, noting that the location is accurate within 85 feet.
Willimantic Switchboard Fire Chiefs Association President Lloyd Niles, a former Windham Center Fire Department chief, said there are four or five " crucial" incidents that he could think of in which he wished they had this software while he was chief. That includes an incident involving a man who got pinned between a truck several years ago.
Vargas said she wants to get the word out about the software so that people feel comfortable with it. She said if someone has a camera out at a scene, people
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