Communications Bureau
 (Dispatch)

Welcome to the Communications Bureau of the Bridgewater Police Department. The department has eleven dispatchers that staff the Communications Center twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. Bridgewater Police Department dispatchers are the vital link between citizens and public safety services. The dispatchers have an expanded range of duties and responsibilities which may lead to making life and death decisions. The Bridgewater Police Communications Bureau is the Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP) and the Public Safety Dispatch Point (PSDP) for all calls within the township.

From January 1, 2011 through December 31, 2011 there were 22,384 calls received by The Bridgewater Police Communications Bureau on the E9-1-1 system. The average answer time for these calls is 3.76 seconds. Calls for service totaled 46,559 during the 2011 calendar year.

All of the dispatchers have certifications in Emergency Medical Dispatch and Basic Telecommunications Course, along with CPR certifications.

Dispatchers are responsible for handling both emergency calls via 9-1-1 and/or the regular phone lines. Not every call received originates in the township so it is the dispatcher’s duty to make sure it goes to the proper agency. Calls that are received include, but are limited to, motor-vehicle accidents, burglaries, panic calls, disturbances, missing persons, welfare checks and any type of alarm.

Dispatchers are also responsible for handling all calls for the six different rescue squads and the six different fire departments. Those departments being:  

 Bradley Gardens Rescue Squad (39 Rescue)

 Bridgewater Emergency Services (Unit 500)

 Bound Brook Rescue Squad (15 Rescue)

 Finderne Rescue Squad (35 Rescue)

 Green Knoll Rescue Squad (34 Rescue)

 Martinsville Rescue Squad (43 Rescue)

 Bradley Gardens Fire Department (21 Fire)

 Country Hills Fire Department (24 Fire)

Finderne Fire Department (30 Fire)

Green Knoll Fire Department (34 Fire)

Martinsville Fire Department (43 Fire)

North Branch Fire Department (49 Fire)

During the winter months, when the roads become icy and or when major storms come through the area, the dispatchers are responsible for contacting the road department to go out and take care of these situations. They also are the dispatch point for the fire official, health department, domestic violence response team, and buildings official when needed.

The Bridgewater Communications Center consists of four separate work stations. Each radio console consists of eighteen separate channels to communicate with police, multiple fire departments, rescue squads, the road department, and one to communicate with state police and med-evac. The Communications Center is also equipped with several radio scanners for the various towns surrounding Bridgewater.

The dispatchers also have 4 computer screens to work from. One of those screens is for the 9-1-1 system, and the others include systems called NCIC (National Crime Information Center), DMV (Division of Motor Vehicles), CJIS (Criminal Justice Information System), NJLETS/NLETS (National and New Jersey Law Enforcement Telecommunications System) and the CAD (Computer Aided Dispatch), where all in house information is stored.

All calls that the dispatchers receive are transmitted through the police frequency to an officer. It is the dispatcher’s duty to prioritize each call and send whatever resources are needed.

Dispatchers are responsible for documenting all of the calls that come through the department. Some calls require case numbers that can be issued through the CAD system that only dispatch assigns. Each call that is put into the CAD system should have information that includes the type of call, the caller’s name, address and phone number, a brief description of the call, and who was assigned to the call. Every call records times of when the call was initiated, when the proper personnel are dispatched, when they arrive on scene and when they clear the scene.

As you have just read, dispatchers have many responsibilities. Dispatchers are considered the first line of defense.

Click here for more information on the 9-1-1 System.