Emergency Communications/911

When you have an emergency, the Hennepin County Sheriff's Communications Division is likely your first call for help. When a telecommunicator receives a call, he or she quickly determines the situation and notifies the police or fire department in the city where the emergency is occurring. The telecommunicator also notifies emergency medical services and other first responders as needed. The Communications Division is located in Golden Valley and dispatches for 24 police departments 20 fire departments in 37 communities.

Each time there is a request for help, the information is entered into the Computer Aided Dispatch system or CAD. This generates what's known as a CAD Event. The Communications Division is typically involved in more than 500,000 each year. Staff made sure the public safety personnel, including police, fire and ambulance responded to accidents, tornado victims, medical emergencies, drowning victims, fires, and other emergencies.

Each year, telecommunicators (also known as dispatchers) answer more than 230,000 emergency 911 calls.

While dispatching emergency 911 calls is the core function of the Communications Division, many other emergency communications responsibilities take place behind the scenes. To improve communications and emergency preparedness among all Hennepin County first responders, Communications Division personnel continue to implement an 800-MHz trunked radio system.  The 800 MHz radio system allows agencies to talk with each other directly on a common frequency throughout the county.

The Sheriff's Communications Division trains local police and fire departments how to use the Sheriff's Office 800-MHz trunked radio system.

The Sheriff's Office is building a new 911 Communications Facility in Plymouth.  It is scheduled to begin operations in 2014 and will replace the aging facility in Golden Valley.

Agencies Dispatched By Hennepin County