Emergency dispatch software debuts with only minor glitches

EVERETT — So far, it’s working, and that’s a big relief.

Before dawn Tuesday, Snohomish County went live with new software for police, firefighters, 911 centers and jail staff.

The county’s emergency dispatchers had paper and pens handy Tuesday, an old-school backup system in case of catastrophic failure. Mill Creek Police Chief Bob Crannell and Everett Fire Chief Murray Gordon were among the many monitoring live updates on the installation from a command post in Everett. Roughly $6.8 million of public money has been spent on the project.

“The whole point of all of this is for everyone in Snohomish County, if you call 911, nothing is different today from yesterday,” sheriff’s spokeswoman Shari Ireton said.

Police and fire departments plugged into the new system, called New World, about 4 a.m.

By 6:40 a.m., dispatchers had used the system to send responders to unincorporated Lynnwood, where a woman in labor needed help.

Now, “we’re plus one” on New World, joked Rich McQuade, operations coordinator at SNOPAC, the emergency dispatch center based in Everett. He’s been working on the project for six years.

The roll-out was designed to happen in phases, he said. His spreadsheet showed more than 100 steps over the past few days, with more to go. The launch “was pretty much seamless,” he said.

The plan for Snohomish County to move to New World Systems software started around 2009. For years the project was plagued by delays and disputes. There even was discussion earlier this year of ditching New World altogether if a “lack of functionality,” as Gordon called it, continued. To add to the concerns, the Michigan-based New World company was recently sold, to the tune of $670 million.

SNOPAC was abuzz Tuesday with more than 30 representatives from New World at work. Extra teams of experts are scheduled to be on hand for days.

They planned for the launch just like they would any other major incident, said SNOPAC chairman Steve Guptill, also the assistant Monroe fire chief.

“If something happens, we have the right people here,” SNOPAC Executive Director Kurt Mills said Tuesday morning. “So far, nothing’s happened.”

Meanwhile, at SNOCOM, the dispatch center in Mountlake Terrace, supervisor Kim Crannell had trained on New World for more than 80 hours. Still, she prepared a backup system that she knew wouldn’t fail. On her desk Tuesday she’d placed different colored Legos on butcher paper, allowing her at a glance to see where fire trucks were deployed in case of trouble.

On her computer screen, New World software was performing as designed. She could see an Edmonds police car blinking on her screen as it traveled westward.

“Every time he moves, the map (on the screen) will move,” she said.

In addition, when SNOCOM and SNOPAC have to transfer 911 calls to each other, they’ll both already have access to the initial information from the caller, she said.

“The idea is we’re improving our overall response times for police and fire,” SNOCOM Executive Director Terry Peterson said. “It’s actually pretty exciting.”

Bugs on Tuesday included some firefighters getting logged out and needing their passwords reset. People still are learning how to use the interactive maps and to change their settings, so they’re not overwhelmed with information about surrounding agencies. Police officers were learning new shorthand codes for when they declare a false alarm or return to patrol.

Nearly every police officer and firefighter in Snohomish County is using the technology. The exceptions are the Washington State Patrol and the Bothell and Tulalip police departments, which run separate dispatch centers. If all goes as planned, emergency responders on New World should have better access to each other’s data, making them more efficient at getting people help and keeping them safe.

For example, the system sends fire trucks based on live GPS tracking, not the old way which was by fire station location.

Firefighters are getting used to the changes, Fire District 1 Capt. Chuck Maddox said.

“All our dispatch is completely different,” he said. “Are the bugs all worked out? Not by any means.”

His crews at Fire Station 19 in Mountlake Terrace were among those who had to reset their passwords. Maddox likes the ideas of the interactive maps, which can show him locations of fire hydrants, but he also is keeping close his trusty, 500-page folder of printed maps. Eventually, the computer maps may be updated to include building floor plans, electrical and gas shut-off spots, and other information that could come in handy during emergencies, he said.

On the police side of things, sheriff’s deputy Chris Veentjer used the new system Tuesday to show his partner they were headed to the same 911 call off Filbert Road, where a man had a question about a newly acquired gun safe. Earlier Tuesday, New World showed Veentjer he was the first to arrive at a Brier-area business where there was a theft to investigate.

“It is much more effective, immediate returns” of information, Veentjer said.

There were hiccups for jail staff but “nothing extraordinary,” sheriff’s corrections Lt. Harry Parker said. In the county lockup, the software keeps track of inmates, their booking records and housing assignments.

By Tuesday afternoon, the launch was feeling kind of like Y2K, Parker said. Y2K was fear about software meltdowns from the changeover to the year 2000. There was a lot of buildup and anxiety, but the reality was anticlimactic.

“You wait and then you’re like, ‘we can handle this,’?” Parker said.

Rikki King: 425-339-3449; rking@heraldnet.com.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Local News

A firefighter stands in silence before a panel bearing the names of L. John Regelbrugge and Kris Regelbrugge during the ten-year remembrance of the Oso landslide on Friday, March 22, 2024, at the Oso Landslide Memorial in Oso, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
‘Flood of emotions’ as Oso Landslide Memorial opens on 10th anniversary

Friends, family and first responders held a moment of silence at 10:37 a.m. at the new 2-acre memorial off Highway 530.

Julie Petersen poses for a photo with images of her sister Christina Jefferds and Jefferds’ grand daughter Sanoah Violet Huestis next to a memorial for Sanoah at her home on March 20, 2024 in Arlington, Washington. Peterson wears her sister’s favorite color and one of her bangles. (Annie Barker / The Herald)
‘It just all came down’: An oral history of the Oso mudslide

Ten years later, The Daily Herald spoke with dozens of people — first responders, family, survivors — touched by the deadliest slide in U.S. history.

Victims of the Oso mudslide on March 22, 2014. (Courtesy photos)
Remembering the 43 lives lost in the Oso mudslide

The slide wiped out a neighborhood along Highway 530 in 2014. “Even though you feel like you’re alone in your grief, you’re really not.”

Director Lucia Schmit, right, and Deputy Director Dara Salmon inside the Snohomish County Department of Emergency Management on Friday, March 8, 2024, in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
How Oso slide changed local emergency response ‘on virtually every level’

“In a decade, we have just really, really advanced,” through hard-earned lessons applied to the pandemic, floods and opioids.

Ron and Gail Thompson at their home on Monday, March 4, 2024 in Oso, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
In shadow of scarred Oso hillside, mudslide’s wounds still feel fresh

Locals reflected on living with grief and finding meaning in the wake of a catastrophe “nothing like you can ever imagine” in 2014.

Everett mall renderings from Brixton Capital. (Photo provided by the City of Everett)
Topgolf at the Everett Mall? Mayor’s hint still unconfirmed

After Cassie Franklin’s annual address, rumors circled about what “top” entertainment tenant could be landing at Everett Mall.

Everett
Everett man sentenced to 3 years of probation for mutilating animals

In 2022, neighbors reported Blayne Perez, 35, was shooting and torturing wildlife in north Everett.

The Washington State University Snohomish County Extension building at McCollum Park is located in an area Snohomish County is considering for the location of the Farm and Food Center on Thursday, March 28, 2024 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Year-round indoor farmers market inches closer to reality near Mill Creek

The Snohomish County Farm and Food Center received $5 million in federal funding. The county hopes to begin building in 2026.

Dorothy Crossman rides up on her bike to turn in her ballot  on Tuesday, Aug. 1, 2023 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Everett leaders plan to ask voters for property tax increase

City officials will spend weeks hammering out details of a ballot measure, as Everett faces a $12.6 million deficit.

Starbucks employee Zach Gabelein outside of the Mill Creek location where he works on Friday, Feb. 23, 2024 in Mill Creek, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Mill Creek Starbucks votes 21-1 to form union

“We obviously are kind of on the high of that win,” store bargaining delegate Zach Gabelein said.

Lynnwood police respond to a collision on highway 99 at 176 street SW. (Photo provided by Lynnwood Police)
Police: Teen in stolen car flees cops, causes crash in Lynnwood

The crash blocked traffic for over an hour at 176th Street SW. The boy, 16, was arrested on felony warrants.

The view of Mountain Loop Mine out the window of a second floor classroom at Fairmount Elementary on Wednesday, Jan. 10, 2024 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
County: Everett mining yard violated order to halt work next to school

At least 10 reports accused OMA Construction of violating a stop-work order next to Fairmount Elementary. A judge will hear the case.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.