CPD seeks solution to 911 call mix-up
CALEXICO — The Calexico Police Department is in the process of working with several phone companies to determine whether emergency 9-1-1 calls originating in Mexicali can be prevented from being routed to local public safety dispatchers.
On an average day, about a dozen 9-1-1 calls originating from Mexicali residents living near the border with Calexico have been routed to public safety dispatchers here ever since Mexicali changed its emergency telephone number in October from 0-6-6 to 9-1-1, said Lt. Gonzalo Gerardo.
The emergency calls originating from Mexicali are being picked up by cell phone companies’ antennas installed on the city’s water tower located on First Street and are routed to Calexico public safety dispatchers, increasing their overall call volume.
“It’s a call that shouldn’t be coming to us,” Gerardo said. “And it does take time away from us.”
However, there doesn’t appear to be any indication that Calexico residents’ emergency calls are mistakenly being routed to Mexicali-based public safety dispatchers, he said.
Of the dozen or so calls the department received on Wednesday, two had to be rerouted to Mexicali-based public safety dispatchers, while the rest were hang-ups, Gerardo said.
Calexico public safety dispatchers have also been attempting to call back the 9-1-1 hang-ups originating in Mexicali, but often will not reach anyone at the other end possibly because the phone may be out of service or the Mexicali caller chooses to ignore a call originating in the United States, Gerardo said.
“We’re not obligated to call back, but we do in case somebody’s life is in danger,” Gerardo said, noting that out-of-service phones still can reach emergency public safety dispatchers in the United States by calling 9-1-1.
Although local public safety dispatchers are able to view the GPS coordinates of incoming emergency calls, the coordinates of incoming Calexico calls originating on First Street similarly reflect coordinates originating right across the border in Mexicali, Gerardo said.
While a possible solution to the problem is pursued, the situation is somewhat relieved by the fact that all of the Calexico Police Department’s dispatchers speak Spanish fluently.
“Our dispatchers are so good they can speak Spanish and type in English at the same time,” Gerardo said.