Floyd County E-911
Mission Statement
To provide public safety communications in a timely, professional and compassionate manner through training and experience, while recognizing that our employees are the vital link in the protection of life and property in Floyd County and the City of Rome.
Main Operational Objective
The Floyd County E911 Communications Center Objective is not to determine which call should be answered, how it is to be answered, or when it is to be answered.
The First Rule: No call shall go unanswered.
The Second Rule: No call for assistance shall ever be denied a response.
ALL calls are to be routed directly and immediately to the appropriate agency.
About the Emergency 911 Center
The Floyd County E911 Center began full operations August 17, 1988. The Center employs 29 full time Communication Officers and 2 Administrative/Support employees. The Center is manned 24 hours a day 365 days a year.
The Center processes both emergency and non-emergency calls from the citizens of Floyd County, call in alarms from alarm companies and administrative request calls.
The Center also provides dispatch communications for the following Public Safety Agencies: Floyd County Police Department, Floyd County Sheriff’s Department, Rome Police Department, Rome/Floyd Fire Department, Floyd Emergency Medical Service, Redmond Emergency Medical Services, Cave Spring Police Department, Cave Spring Fire Department and Emergency Management.
In 2016, the E911 Center processed 211,324 calls and dispatched 168,027 calls for service.
General Information and Reminders
- E911 employees cannot give callers legal advice. If you do call 911 for legal advice, we will offer to send you a police officer, direct you to call the police station during business hours or to seek legal counsel from an attorney.
- If you dial 911 by mistake you should stay on the line to verify with dispatch that there is no problem. If you decide to hang up, a uniformed police officer will be dispatched to your location.
- Make sure your children know their address and phone number.
- Your house number should be clearly posted and visible from the street either day or night.
- Post your phone number, address and directions to your address by your family phones.
- If you are traveling, pay attention to your location and your surroundings. If you dial 911 while traveling, your call will be routed to the E911 center that is responsible for the county, parish or municipality that you are in.
Frequently Asked Questions
When should I call 911?
You should call 911 when you need a response from police, fire or ems.
When should I NOT call 911?
If your utilities are out, such as cable, power, phone etc, you should contact the company that you have those services with. If you have questions considering inclement weather, road conditions or school closings, you should listen to a local radio station or tune to local television channels. For phone directory assistance, you should call 411. Never call 911 as a joke.
What will the dispatcher need to know when I call 911?
- The location of the emergency
- The phone number that you are calling from
- The nature of the emergency
- Your name
- Any other descriptors of persons/vehicles involved in the incident or landmarks and/or directions to the emergency
It is important to stay calm, speak clearly and to stay on the line as long as you feel safe and/ or until the dispatcher tells you to hang up. It may seem that the dispatcher is asking too many questions. It is important to get as much information as possible. This information is relayed to units that are en-route to the incident location.
What is the difference between a residential call and a cell phone call?
Calls for assistance from a residential or “hard wired plug-in phone” will come into the E911 center with a name, call back number and an address. However, the dispatcher will still verify this information to make sure it is correct and that the responding agencies needed are directed to the proper location. Wireless or cell phone calls that come in will contain varying information. This information depends on the type of cell phone that you have and whether or not it is GPS capable. GPS capable phones will provide an estimated physical location. The complainant’s name, location and call back number are not available to the Dispatcher and will have to be verified. Providing landmarks, mile markers and general location descriptors will help speed a response to your location.
What if I have a non-emergency call?
Our Communications Center is still considered “Central Dispatch” for all of Rome/Floyd County Public Safety responders. Our center fields numerous calls and responses for non- emergency calls, or we direct the caller to the appropriate agency for assistance. IF you are in doubt to whether or not you have an actual emergency our dispatchers will assist you in determining a proper response.
How are alarms handled in Floyd County?
First, there are several types of alarms. There are fire alarms, burglar alarms (both residential and business), panic or hold up alarms and medical alarms. All alarms are called into the E911 Center by an alarm monitoring company. Our dispatchers take the initial alarm call and coordinate a Public Safety response to the alarm location. Our agency will dispatch to the location that is given by the monitoring company.
Upon arrival, the responders will advise 911 whether or not the alarm is true or false. Due to Alarm Ordinances by the City and County Governments, the E911 Administration maintains a customer database of all alarms that have been responded to throughout the year. The E911 office tallies all alarms and you are monetarily responsible for any false alarms that total over three.
The City and County false alarm charges are:
4th alarm: $35.00 6th alarm: $100.00
5th alarm: $65.00 7th alarm: $125.00
There is NEVER a charge for false medical alarms.
What is considered a "false alarm"?
The definition of a false alarm: An alarm signal eliciting a response by police or fire fighters or other public officials when a situation requiring a response by police or fire fighters or other public officials does not in fact exist, excluding alarm signals caused by no fault of the user and caused by no apparent malfunction and also excluding an alarm signal caused by violent conditions of nature, such as, but not limited to, lightning, tornadoes, or other extraordinary circumstances not reasonably subject to control by the alarm business or alarm user. Questions, including billing and payment, should be directed to the City of Rome Clerk’s Office or the Floyd County Finance Department depending on the location's jurisdiction. Should you desire a copy of the alarm ordinances, please email us at 911adminclerk@floydcountyga.org.
Do I have to register my alarm?
Yes, if you have an alarm or plan to install one, it is required by ordinance to register the alarm with Floyd County E-911 within 30 days of installation. There are several ways to register the alarm. You may click here to print a registration form to fill out & return via mail to 5 Government Plaza Suite 232, Rome, GA 30161. You may request a registration form by email at 911adminclerk@floydcountyga.org. You may register the alarm in person at 5 Government Plaza Suite 232, or you may register the alarm online. For online instructions you may click here. You will need to provide the name the alarm is registered in, the address where the alarm is located and the phone number of the premises. There is a one time $15.00 registration fee required. Please note a response to an unregistered alarm could result in a fee up to $150.00.
Am I allowed to request copies of E911 reports or audio recordings?
Yes. You can request paper copies of E911 calls and/or Audio recordings on CD. The CD copy can only be played on a computer and the charge is $3.00 per CD. Computer Aided Dispatch Reports are $1.00 each.
We request that you fill out the following request form and return it to the E911 Administrative Offices located in Suite 232 at the Law Enforcement Complex or submit it electronically online:
SUBMIT REQUEST FORM ONLINE HERE
For questions regarding Floyd County E-911 Open Records contact Alisha Burnes; Records Custodian at 706-236-4543 or by email at burnesa@floydcountyga.org.
The E911 Center has 3 business days to provide the requested records or to provide a written response as to why it will take longer than three business days. (Per Open Records Act: O.C.G.A. 50-18-70.)