Regional Dispatch Center

Who we dispatch for:

The Phoenix Fire Department’s Regional Dispatch Center (PFDRDC) is the central point of the Regional Automatic Aid System. Since 1979, the Phoenix Fire Department has created a response system that was adopted regionwide, currently serving 29 communities which are covered by 17 different agencies. This service area is over 3,200 square miles in size and encompasses the City of Phoenix as well as the surrounding areas that make up what is widely known as “The Valley of the Sun”.

This centralized response model maintains consistency throughout the region, while agencies that are part of the automatic aid system are dispatched to emergency incidents without regard to city boundaries. This response system includes the following capabilities:

• Fire Protection
• Emergency Medical Services and Transportation
• Special Operations
  • Hazardous Materials Response
  • Technical Rescue Response
  • Urban Search and Rescue Response
• Aircraft Rescue Firefighting
• Critical Infrastructure Intelligence
• Large-scale Event Management
• Large-scale Disaster/Incident Management Team
• Dispatch and Emergency Communications
• Fire Investigations
• Public Information
• Crisis Response
• Mental/Behavioral Health Response

Who's Dispatched Now

How we dispatch:
The Phoenix Fire Department has a long history of providing the highest level of life safety and property preservation to the citizens we serve. This all starts in the 911 dispatch center, known as the Phoenix Fire Department Regional Dispatch Center (PFDRDC). Inside the PFDRDC, the 911 call is answered and then entered by a dispatcher into the Computer Aided Dispatch system or “CAD” system for short.

This technology within the PFDRDC reduces the span of time it takes a fire department unit to be dispatched and arrive to their call. This reduction in response time ultimately saves lives. Our state-of-the-art CAD system is customized to fit our needs, thereby ensuring the highest level of customer service at all times. We remain on the cutting edge not only with our CAD system but also with our radio and telephone equipment and enhancements.

The Regional Automatic Aid system erases jurisdictional boundaries for all participating agencies. This means that any time you call 911, the closest and most appropriate emergency response vehicle to you will be dispatched regardless of city boundary. This ensures first and foremost that you, the customer, are receiving the highest level of care available in the shortest amount of time, and secondly, allows all participating agencies better use of their resources. Each participating agency must adhere to standard operating policies and procedures which allow multiple agencies to work side-by-side on incidents under one Incident Command framework. This seamless, cooperative effort ensures that the closest most appropriate resources are dispatched without a time or distance delay.

How it runs:
In the dispatch center itself you will find highly-trained personnel on duty 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, answering incoming 911 calls or assisting dispatched units via the radio. The dispatch center, also referred to as the “Alarm Room”, is staffed with a shift supervisor, a lead dispatcher and a team of dispatchers. All PFDRDC dispatchers are cross-trained in all phone and radio positions and rotate positions throughout their shift, answering incoming calls for service, dispatching calls and handling the radio traffic of working incidents. On busier shifts, the staffing level is increased, and we have the ability to call in additional personnel if elevated activity levels require it. All of our dispatchers are Emergency Medical Dispatch-certified and provide self-help instructions as necessary, meaning they will provide lifesaving instructions and guidance over the phone until the first responders arrive on scene.

Calling 9-1-1:
911 communications centers are referred to as Public Safety Answering Points, or “PSAPs”. In the Phoenix metro area, law enforcement and fire and medical PSAPs are separate. All law enforcement PSAPs are considered “Primary PSAPs” meaning the 911 call is delivered to them first. The Phoenix Fire Department’s Regional Dispatch Center is considered a “Secondary PSAP” meaning the 911 call is delivered to us by a law enforcement dispatch center.

How this works is, when an individual dials 911 to report an emergency the call will be answered by the local law enforcement agency first. That local law enforcement agency determines if the emergency requires fire and/or medical services and if so, transfers the call to the PFDRDC. This all transpires within seconds. When the 911 call is delivered to the dispatch center, it is automatically served to one of our Fire Communications Operators, also called a “Call Taker” via Automatic Call Distribution (ACD). The Call Taker will identify themselves as answering on behalf of the Fire Department and will confirm the location of the emergency, the phone number, and determine the nature of the emergency; all while entering this information into the CAD system. As the Call Taker inputs this information, the incident is then routed to another Fire Communications Operator, our “Channel One Operator”, who reviews the call for accuracy and assigns the closest, most appropriate unit to the call by alerting the fire station(s) and voicing the call over the fire station speakers.

This all transpires in seconds, and all the while the initial Call Taker is still on the phone gathering further information and/or giving self-help instructions if needed. The Channel One Operator is responsible for “dispatching” the call or letting the responding units know where they are to respond, what type of emergency they are responding to and the tactical radio channel the incident will be worked on.

Once the Channel One Operator has dispatched the incident, it is then assigned a tactical radio channel via the CAD system. Radio channels are determined based on the type of emergency and the location of the emergency. The PFDRDC utilizes 2 radio systems, 800 MHz for medical incidents and VHF for hazard incidents. All incidents dispatched within the Phoenix Regional Automatic Aid system will be assigned to one of the 25 tactical radio channels we operate. Every radio channel is monitored by another Fire Communications Operator called the Tactical Radio Operator, or “TRO”. The TRO will communicate with units over the radio and provide support to all units assigned to the tactical radio channel they are monitoring. This position is responsible for ensuring that units arrive safely at their dispatched location, ensuring that units are safe and accounted for on their assigned incident, and will dispatch additional resources to the call if required. The TRO will also thoroughly document pertinent information in the incident’s history via the CAD system.

How Units are Dispatched:
Our CAD system uses global positioning technology to identify where every piece of equipment is at all times. This is commonly referred to as “AVL” or Automatic Vehicle Location. This technology not only selects the closest most appropriate unit to dispatch, but it is also a tool used by the Call Taker when reassuring the caller, by being able to give them precise information about the unit's distance from the call. While giving CPR instructions on a drowning call, for example, the Call Taker can let the caller know that the unit is one (1) mile out, 1/2 mile out, and can keep them updated through the continuous polling of the AVL system.

The CAD system makes recommendations on what unit(s) to dispatch based on pre-determined response requirements for each call type in the system. We call these “nature codes” and currently there are over 250 different codes to cover all of the different types of emergencies we manage. When we have an emergency that involves someone having a heart attack, this nature code has a pre-set response requirement, and units are recommended by the CAD system based on that criterion and the known location of available units. Once the CAD system selects the appropriate units to be dispatched, those unit(s) are suggested to the Channel One operator who reviews the recommended dispatch. At that time, they would make any changes necessary and then dispatch accordingly, always ensuring the closest and most appropriate help is on the way to you!

Dispatcher Recruitment Brochure