Michael R. Kent
Chief of Police
45 Center Street
Burlington, MA 01803
www.bpd.org
For Immediate Release
Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018
Media Contact: John Guilfoil
Phone: 617-993-0003
Email: john@jgpr.net
Burlington Police Department Transitions to 911 Wireless Direct
BURLINGTON — Chief Michael Kent is pleased to report that the Burlington Police Department has transitioned to a more modern 911 dispatch system that will shorten response times during emergencies.
By transitioning to the Massachusetts 911 Department’s Wireless Direct program, the Burlington Police Department’s Emergency Operations Center now receives all 911 calls originating from cell phones in Burlington, rather than having them first go through a state police dispatch center.
Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile and Sprint are all now actively directing their customers’ 911 calls to the Burlington Police Department’s dispatch center, reducing the amount of time it takes to initiate a police, fire or emergency medical response while only slightly increasing the department’s daily call volume.
Since implementing Wireless Direct, Burlington Police have received approximately a dozen more calls per day.
“Seconds count in emergency situations, and this system enables us to get people the help they need as quickly as possible and we believe that any increase in call volume is offset by the benefits of getting these calls directly, ” Chief Kent said. “We want to provide the best service that we can to everyone in our community, and enhancing our response time on every call — especially critical ones — will help save lives.”
The Burlington Police Department is one of only 15 agencies statewide that transitioned to the Wireless Direct program last month.
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