NAP- Neighborhood Alliance of Pawtucket

Snow Emergency Information

Option 2

You will soon be able to get the latest headlines from the Cop Shop by dialing up the station and pressing Option Two.

Four days of snow pushed them into it, according to Police Major Stephen P. Ormerod.

"During the storms, we got buried by callers asking about parking bans," Ormerod said on Friday. "We decided there had to be a better way."

Once the snow stopped and life returned to what passes for normal in a police department, the police brass sat down with the department's computer gurus, Detective Steven Allcock and technician Laurie Simpson.

The conclusion was that the police could let a machine do most of their work.

"We'll be changing the phone menu this weekend," Ormerod said. "When you call our business number, the second option will be to hear detailed information about snow emergencies, traffic conditions or special event.

"Once people access that line, there will be a message in English and Spanish answering what we believe are the most common questions."

This past week, for example, the message would have given the status of the city's parking bans and information about where to park when cars are prohibited from the road.

"We could also use it if there was an emergency and we had to evacuate a neighborhood or if there was a traffic alert," Ormerod said. "We would also use it on July 3 to announce traffic restrictions for the fireworks."

The system, Ormerod said, should make it easier for people to get routine information and give police personnel more time to work with callers asking more complicated questions.

"During an emergency, we get a lot of calls from people with pressing questions, people who are looking for cars that are towed or looking for information about getting their cars back.

"On a busy day, we don't want a desk sergeant spending all his time answering the same question, repeatedly, about the snow ban.

"Basically, we want to make it easier for people to get the information they need when they need it."

To reach the department, call 727-9100. The recorded message will be option, two, Ormerod said.

The system could be used extensively in an emergency, Ormerod said. Police have had to shut down streets and evacuate neighborhoods several times in the past few years in response to big fires, chemical spills and special events.

"The beauty of this system is that, with an emergency, we can actually call in from the scene and record a message from outside," Ormerod said. "We could get a message out immediately if we have to close streets and reroute traffic."

The system could be running as early as today, barring technical difficulties.

"We'll try this to see how it works and how people like it," Ormerod said. "We're open to suggestions on this."



©The Pawtucket Times 2005