Dispatch Staffing Shortage Not Normal For FDL County

Fond du Lac County Communications and Emergency Management Director Bobbi Hicken says the County’s Dispatch Center did a pretty good job during a staffing shortage last year. Hicken says normally they carry about 23 dispatchers, but at times they were down to 18 during a hiring process and with several medical leaves. She says the dispatchers they had did a great job filling the void with about 85 percent of the overtime voluntarily given.  She says it isn’t something the County usually experiences, but is more common place in other dispatching centers. Hicken even filled in as a dispatcher at times when they were short-handed.