Greene County 911 "went live" on Tuesday with a new radio communications system that enhances the emergency communications agency's ability to quickly dispatch and communicate with emergency agencies.

Jerry Bird, Greene County's 911 director, said the new radio system, which was still being "tweaked" by installers on Wednesday, replaces an aging radio system that had been in place since Greene County 911 went into operation in 1993.

Bird said the new radio system cost $156,000 and that Greene County 911 spent another $25,000 to add a third dispatch console that can be used for training or additional staffing during serious emergency situations.

Normally, Bird said, Greene County 911 operates with two dispatchers on duty 24 hours a day, seven days a week. "We have three eight-hour shifts," Bird said.

Unlike the old 911 radio system, Bird said, the new Motorola MCC5500 radio system is totally computer controlled.

Instead of the bank of push-buttons that 911 dispatchers used to control the old radio system, Bird said, 911 dispatchers are using a computer monitor and a mouse to dispatch fire departments, Greene County-Greeneville Emergency Medical Services ambulances and the Greeneville Emergency & Rescue Squad to emergency situations, such as fires and traffic accidents.

The new radio system, Bird said, also saves precious seconds in that its computer controls allow 911 dispatchers to dispatch all three emergency agencies with a single click of a mouse.

Previously, Bird said, dispatchers had to dispatch different emergency agencies separately.

For example, to send EMS, a fire department (city of county) and the Rescue Squad to a traffic accident, 911 dispatchers previously had to send out three separate pages.

That, according to 911 dispatcher Jon Waddell who was working on Wednesday, took precious seconds during an emergency.

With the new system, Waddell said, all responding emergency agencies hear the same dispatch message and get the same information at the same time. That, he said, can cut down on confusion among emergency first responders.

Another benefit of the new radio system, 911 Director Bird said, is that it gives dispatchers the capability to "patch together" the radio communications of several different emergency agencies at an emergency scene to allow them to talk directly to each other as if they were on the same radio frequency.

Previously, emergency agencies had to switch radio channels in order to be able to speak to each other.

Dispatcher Waddell said the increased "patching" capability of the new radio system is especially important at emergency scenes where helicopter transportation of an injured person becomes necessary.

The new radio system, he said, will enable volunteer firefighters, Rescue Squad and EMS personnel to speak directly via radio with either a Wings Air Rescue or WellmontOne medical evacuation helicopter as the aircraft approaches an emergency scene.

Volunteer firefighters and Rescue Squad personnel, he said, generally have the responsibility for setting up landing zones for medical evacuation helicopters at emergency scenes.

As a result, Waddell said, firefighters and other emergency personnel on the ground need to be able to speak with helicopter crews to warn them of potential obstacles near the landing zone and to direct the helicopter to a safe landing.

Bird, the county's 911 director, said the new radio system, and a computer-aided dispatching (CAD) system installed at 911 headquarters on Union Street last year have greatly enhanced 911 operations here.

The CAD system, he said, displays on dispatchers' computer screens a computer-generated map that shows the locations from which calls to 911 for emergency assistance have been placed.

The map, which also shows the nearest cross-streets, aides 911 dispatchers in directing ambulances, fire trucks and other emergency vehicles to emergency scenes.

Bird also said Greene County 911 is working to upgrade its "Reverse 911" system to enable dispatchers to send emergency warning messages by telephone to specific areas of Greeneville and Greene County in the event of a disaster such as an impending tornado or a serious chemical leak.