Agenda Item No: 3.a
PLACENTIA CITY COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT
Meeting Date: September 2, 2025
Submitted by: Rosanna Ramirez
From: Administrative Services
Subject:
Placentia Public Safety Communications Center 2024 Annual Report Financial Impact:
Fiscal Impact:
None
Summary:
On July 1, 2020, the Placentia Public Safety Communications Center began call processing and dispatching the City’s new Fire and EMS services, in addition to handling the Placentia Police Department operations. This Report (“Report”) is a summary of the work accomplished by the Placentia Public Safety Communications Center from January 1, 2024, through December 31, 2024.
Recommendation:
Recommended Action: It is recommended that the City Council take the following actions:
1. Receive and file a copy of the completed Placentia Public Safety Communications Center 2024 Annual Report.
Strategic Plan Statement:
This item is consistent with the City Council approved 5-Year Strategic Goal to Ensure that Public Safety Continues to be a High Priority under Objective #2.4, which is improve communication and operational efficiency between Police, Fire and Communications.
Discussion:
The Placentia Public Safety Communications Center completed an Annual Report (Report) for the period of January 1, 2024 through December 31, 2024. This past year the Communications Center triaged 58,000 calls which includes over 5,300 calls requesting medical and fire assistance. The Report gathers information about Communications Center activity throughout the year and is a produced publication that summarizes events, statistics, budget, and the Communications Center highlights and accomplishments. This Report was produced for the public to relay information about the Communications Center performance, accomplishments, and strategic goals for 2025.
Attachments
Presentation - 2024 Annual Report Final.pdf
1 PPSC 2024 Annual Report pamphlet.pdf
2 Placentia Public Safety Communications
P r e p a r e d b y M e g a n H e r e d i a
September 2, 2025
3 ABOUT USABOUT US
The City of Placentia’s Public Safety
Communications Center is responsible for
answering all 9-1-1 emergency calls for
police, fire, and emergency medical services
within our community. The center operates
continuously, 24 hours a day, seven days a
week, and is staffed by a team of highly
trained and dedicated Public Safety
Dispatchers. These professionals play a
critical role in ensuring that emergency
resources are dispatched promptly and
efficiently. They are committed to providing
exceptional service to our residents,
businesses, and visitors while supporting the
mission of the city, our police, and fire
departments.
4 The Public Safety Communications Center is dedicated to delivering superior service to the residents, businesses, visitors, and emergency responders of the City of Placentia.
Serving as the vital link between the community and emergency responders, the Center upholds the highest standards of professionalism to protect life and property. Every call for help is met with accuracy, efficiency, and compassion, ensuring timely and precise information is relayed to support effective emergency response. 5 The Communications Center staff
includes 1 Manager, 3 Supervisors, 12 full
time Dispatchers, and 3 part-time
Dispatchers.
Staffing
This year, our staff successfully completed biennial recertification for Emergency Medical Dispatching (EMD) and Emergency Fire Dispatching (EFD). These recertifications ensure that our team stays current with the ever-evolving call processing standards in the public safety environment.
In addition to mandatory recertifications, our dispatchers actively participated in specialized fire department training, including Mayday exercises, to enhance response capabilities during emergency situations. They also engaged in Police Department-focused training, such as the Crisis Assessment Team (CAT) program and Control One training, which serves as the central point of contact for mutual aid coordination among all law enforcement agencies.
Training
6 2025 Communications Center Call Statistics
The Center answered and processed over 58,862
calls this year:
13,537 9-1-1 calls
45,325 non-emergency calls
9-1-1 Call Performance:
Each call met National Emergency Number
Association (NENA) standards:
90% of 9-1-1 calls SHALL be answered
within 15 seconds
95% of 9-1-1 calls SHOULD be answered
within 20 seconds
Placentia Communications Center exceeded
these standards:
99.11% of calls answered within 15
seconds
99.30% of calls answered within 20
seconds
Placentia continues to demonstrate exceptional
responsiveness, surpassing national benchmarks.
Call Processing
7 34,338 Calls For
Service
Police Events
Most of the Center ’s activity consists of law enforcement operations.
Dispatcher Responsibilities:
Answer incoming calls
Generate officer-initiated calls for service, such as traffic stops and patrol checks
Complete Department of Justice-related data entries
Handle all radio traffic
Run subjects for warrants and interpret the returns to provide critical information back to the Officers
Software & Systems:
In addition to the 58,000 calls answered, staff entered 34,338 calls for service into the data system
Dispatchers are trained on a variety of systems, including:
GPS mapping
Text-to-911
Department of Justice data links
License plate readers
And other specialized public safety software
This highlights the complexity and scope of dispatch operations, showing the critical role the Center plays in daily law enforcement activities.
8 Fire Events
The Communications Center staff is responsible for dispatching our fire apparatuses to various fire-related calls for service. On a daily basis, we monitor the activity of:
1 Engine
1 Truck
2 Paramedic Units
1 Battalion Chief
Ambulance transport vehicles
Over the course of the year, the Center processed 1 ,513 fire department-related calls for service, including:
Service Calls: 368
Fire Alarms: 290
Traffic Collisions: 272
Mutual Aid Incidents
This year, we received 280 requests for mutual aid from surrounding fire agencies.
Structure Fires
The Communications Center processed 52 calls that met the criteria for a structure fire.9
Medical Events
Our Communications Center worked closely with
Lynch Ambulance to manage Advanced Life Support
(ALS) medical events. Dispatchers manage all medical
emergencies with a focus on delivering rapid
response and positive community interactions.
Total Calls:
3,829 medical calls were answered and dispatched in
2024, up 7.47 % from last year.
Life Saves:
In 2024, 2 Life Savers were celebrated for successful
CPR instructions given over the phone, assisting in
the Chain of Survival .
10 2024 Highlights
IAED Accreditation
Our proudest achievement this year was
earning accreditation through the
International Academies of Emergency
Dispatch (IAED). Agencies must complete
20 tasks to demonstrate compliance with
the Academy’s standards. We are the only
accredited center in Orange County.
Public Outreach
Created a public service announcement on
how to call 9-1-1 (available on YouTube)
Produced a recruitment video
Continued participating in school career
days to educate our youth
Participared in various city events such as
National Night Out, Citizen’s Academy, Trunk
or Treat, CERT course, just to name a few
Accomplishments
11 12
GoalsGoals
Staffing: Fill all current full-time and part-time dispatcher vacancies.
Field Collaboration: Continue providing opportunities for field responders to participate in dispatch center sit-alongs.
Community Outreach: Expand engagement efforts to additional senior living facilities within the city.
Technology: Implement software upgrades, including Next-Gen 9-1-1 .
Quality Assurance: Launch a QA program specifically for police incidents.
Facilities: Relocate operations to the new Public Safety Building.
City Engagement: Continue participating in city-sponsored activities such as CERT, Citizen’s Academy, and National Night Out .
Fire Response: Reformat fire-related call processing for greater efficiency.
Accreditation: Begin the accreditation process with the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA).
13 The Placentia Public Safety Communications Center
employees would like to thank our City Council, City
Administration, our public safety partners at
Placentia Police Department, Placentia Fire & Life
Safety, and the residents of our city for their
continued support .
Thank You
14 ANNUALREPORT
2024
City of Placentia
Placentia Public Safety
Communications Center
15 TABLE OF CONTENT
City Council
About Our Center
Call Processing
Fire Events
Wellness
Thank You
02 04
06 08
10 12
03 05
07 09
11 Vision & Mission
Personnel & Training
Police Events
Community Outreach
Achievements
Goals13
Medical Events
14 16
CITY COUNCIL
Jeremy Yamaguchi
Councilmember
District 3
Chad Wanke
Mayor Pro Tem
District 4
Kevin Kirwin
Mayor
District 2
Thomas Hummer
Councilmember
District 1
Ward Smith
Councilmember
District 5
0217
Placentia’s Communications Center is the only
Accredited Center of Excellence in Orange County. We
are highly trained in all aspects of our job. We treat
each of our customers, both internal and external,
with professionalism and respect.
Dispatchers are first to answer the call!
ABOUT OUR CENTER
A dispatch center is the nucleus for all public safety
operations. The center is staffed 24-hours a day, every day of the year. Our personnel is responsible for
carrying out all police, fire and medical dispatching for our community.
0318
VISION & MISSION
Vision Statement
Mission Statement
We aspire to become a
communications center who is
respected and admired by our public
safety peers and the citizens of
Placentia. We want to do the right
thing, at the right time, for the right
reason.
Our Public Safety Communications
Center is committed to providing
exceptional service to the citizens and
responders of the City of Placentia
using the highest standards to protect
life and property.
0419
PERSONNEL &
TRAINING
The Communications Center
staff includes 1 Manager,
3 Supervisors, 12 full-time
Dispatchers, and 3 part-time
Dispatchers.
To maintain 24-hour
coverage in our dispatch
center, we staff between 2 to
4 employees on any given
shift. Staffing is dependent
on activity levels and can be
adjusted as necessary. This year, our staff members
were required to recertify for
Emergency Medical Dispatching
(EMD) and Emergency Fire
Dispatching (EFD). This biennial
recertification allows us to keep
up with the everchanging call
processing standards within the
public safety environment.
05 Staffing
Training
20 CALL PROCESING
06 Staffing
When You Call Us, We Need Specific Information
The Communications Center answered and processed over
58,000 emergency and non-emergency phone calls
throughout the year.
13,537 9-1-1 calls were processed
45,325 non-emergency phone calls were answered
Each of the 9-1-1 calls answered met the national standard for call answering, which is determined by the National
Emergency Number Association (NENA). The standards of
practice for answering 9-1-1 calls state:
90% of all 9-1-1 calls SHALL be answered within fifteen (15) seconds.
95% of all 9-1-1 calls SHOULD be answered within twenty (20) seconds.
Placentia’s Communications Center continues to exceed the national standard.
99.11%
99.30%
-2024 average for answering 9-1-1 calls within 15
seconds
-2024 average for answering 9-1-1 calls within 20
seconds.
Location of the event1.
What happened2.
Is there a time delay involved3.
Description of the subjects and/or vehicles4.
Any officer safety information available5.
21 Call For Service Statistics
Most of the Center’s activity is law enforcement related.
Our Dispatchers handle various aspects of police
related events. Dispatchers answer phone calls,
generate officer initiated calls for service like traffic stops and patrol checks, and complete various
Department of Justice related data entries.
Software & Systems
Between the 58,000 phone calls answered
this year and dispatching officers on self-
initiated activities, 34,338 calls for service
were entered in our data system.
Our staff members are trained to use various
software systems which include GPS
mapping, Text-to-911, Department of Justice
data links, license plate readers & more.
Priority Events
Each call for service is issued a pre-
determined call priority, which allows the
incident to be dispatched based on severity
of the event. Our team members aim to
dispatch each call quickly and appropriately.07
POLICE EVENTS
22 Call Statistics
The Communications Center staff is responsible for
dispatching our fire apparatus to various fire related
calls for service. We monitor the activity of 1 Engine, 1 Truck, 2 paramedic units, 1 Battalion Chief, and
ambulance transport vehicles on a daily basis.
Most Frequent Events
Over the course of the year, 1,513 total calls for
service were entered that were fire
department related.
Service Calls- 368
Fire Alarms- 290
Traffic Collisions- 272
Mutual Aid Incidents
This year, we received 280 requests for
mutual aid from our surrounding fire
agencies.
08 FIRE EVENTS
Structure Fires
Our Communications Center processed 52
calls for service that met the criteria of a
structure fire.
23 Sick Person- 781
Falls- 619
Breathing Problems- 396
Unknown Medical- 354
Unconscious- 292
Call Statistics
Communications Center personnel works closely with
our partners at Lynch Ambulance for our Advanced
Life Support (ALS) medical events. Dispatchers answer
and process all medical emergencies for our city.
Together, we aim to provide a positive interaction and
quick response to the community.
Most Frequent Events
This year, we answered and dispatched a
total of 3,829 calls for service that were
medical in nature. This number is an increase
of 7.47 % from last year’s total.
Life Saves
Our personnel is celebrated when we
successfully provide CPR instructions over
the phone to assist in the Chain of Survival. In
2024, we proudly celebrated 2 Life Savers.
09 MEDICAL EVENTS
24 COMMUNITY
OUTREACH
During the course of the year our
Dispatchers were able to
participate in numerous outreach
events which included:
Trunk or Treat
National Night Out
El Dorado High School Career
Day
Kramer Middle School Career
Day
City of Placentia CERT Program
Danish with a Dispatcher
Emerald Isle Resident Education
Cub Scout Event
City of Placentia Citizen’s
Academy Our staff remains grateful for
the opportunities to share job
knowledge and requirements
with the community.
We also enjoy having visitors in
our Dispatch Center, like the
neighborhood Boy Scouts and
Girl Scouts who are interested
in seeing our work
environment.
Where We’ve Been
What We’ve Done
1025
In July, our Manager submitted
an application to participate in
a wellness initiative that
California Peace Officer
Standards & Training (POST)
offered to state law
enforcement agencies.
Placentia’s Dispatch Center
was selected as one of the first
60 agencies to participate. As
part of this program, one of our
team members was able to
attend a week-long training
course to become our
Organizational Wellness
Coordinator. The Coordinator is
responsible for sharing
knowledge about overall
wellness with our staff,
creating a wellness plan,
composing a wellness team,
and implementing various
ideas to include wellness in our
Communication Center’s daily
activity.
POST Organizational Wellness Program
By the end of December,
our Wellness Team was
created, we began
participating in a Fit Bit
activity tracking program,
scheduled our first team
meeting, and determined
our staff would like to focus
on physical wellness, rest &
recharge, and eating
nutritional food after
completing an anonymous
survey. Our center is well
on its way to beginning a
wellness initiative.
WELLNESS
11 LIVE WELL
26 ACHEIVEMENTS
ACE
Accomplishments
Our proudest moment this year
was achieving accreditation
through the International
Academies of Emergency
Dispatch (IAED). This
organization requires agencies
that are interested in this
recognition to complete 20
tasks to demonstrate the
Academy’s standards are being
met. Placentia Public Safety
Communications Center is the
only accredited center in
Orange County.
Created a public service announcement on
how to call 9-1-1 which can be found on
YouTube
Created a recruitment video
Continued to participate in various school
career days
Hired additional part-time staff
Provided opportunities for our fire
personnel to complete sit-alongs in our
center
Trained several police officers to become
certified to assist with overtime in the
dispatch center. 12
For more information on the ACE
requirements, please visit
www.emergencydispatch.org
27 GOALS
What’s Next?
Fill all current full-time and
part- time dispatcher vacancies
Continue to provide additional
opportunities for our field
responders to complete
dispatch center sit-alongs
Expand our community
outreach to additional senior
living facilities located in the
city
Implement software system
upgrades like Next-Gen 9-1-1
Implement a quality assurance
program for police incidents
13 Relocate to the new Public
Safety Building
Continue to participate in city
sponsored activities including
CERT, Citizen’s Academy and
National Night Out
Reformat our fire related call
processing
Begin the accreditation
process for The Commission
on Accreditation for Law
Enforcement Agencies
(CALEA)
28 THANK YOU
The Placentia Public Safety Communications Center
employees would like to thank our City Council, City
Administration, our public safety team at Placentia Police Department, Placentia Fire & Life Safety, Lynch
Ambulance, and the residents of our city for their
continued support.
Contact Us
714- 993-8111
placentia_public_safety_comm
www.placentia.org
401 E. Chapman Ave., Placentia
1429