Westport, New Canaan Join Forces In Combined Fire Dispatch

WESTPORT, Conn. -- After several weeks of testing and training, the Westport/New Canaan Fire Department Combined Dispatch is now a reality.

The Westport/New Canaan Fire Department Combined Dispatch opens for business. The services officially merged at midnight Oct. 1.
Photo Credit: *Contributed*

New Canaan First Selectman Rob Mallozzi and Westport First Selectman Jim Marpe
Photo Credit: *Contributed*

Daily Voice

10/03/2014 5:00 a.m.

Westport officially began fire dispatching services for New Canaan as of midnight Oct. 1, Westport First Selectman Jim Marpe and New Canaan First Selectman Rob Mallozzi announced.

The center will be staffed with a second dispatcher during the busier daytime hours Mondays through Fridays when the most calls for service are generated for both municipalities.

The first dispatch for New Canaan occurred at 9:10 a.m. Wednesday for a two-car motor vehicle accident on the Merritt Parkway.

“Not only are we excited that the combined center will help improve service and public safety, but it will help serve as a template for future regionalization and mutual cost savings," Marpe and Mallozzi said In a joint statement.

The Westport Fire Department Dispatch Center handles about 3,500 calls for service a year, with New Canaan generating an additional 900 to 1,000 calls per year.

This project has been in the works for over five years. This is the first joint municipal dispatch center in Fairfield County.

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