2024 Annual
Report
Placentia Public Safety Communications
Prepared by Megan Heredia
September 2, 2025
ABOUT 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.
OUR MISSION
Personnel &
TrainingThe 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
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 ans wered
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
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.
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.
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.
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
Wellness
Goals
•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).
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