Hennessey Town Trustee Harold Shaw offered to show a heart monitor device on his chest during the board’s Thursday night meeting.

Other trustees and audience members let him know that wasn’t necessary.

“If my heart stops beating,” he said, “it’ll send a message to 911 and they’ll get an ambulance to me so I can get help and don’t die.”

His point was he thought he could die under the town’s current dispatching system because it could take too long to get him help.

In the current system, the 911 operator now calls Hennessey police dispatcher, then police notify the ambulance service.

The 911 operator’s computer screen shows the caller’s heart rate and their exact location. It also cuts out “the middle man” in case of misinformation between agencies about the caller’s location and health issues, the board has been told.

The fire department was recently given wrong directions, said Mayor Bert Gritz, who is also fire chief.

Trustees approved a contract with 911 last month contingent on approval by the town’s attorney. That contract continues to do away with onsite 24/7 dispatchers, but the attorney made several changes and it was on this month’s agenda for approval.

Contract OK’d After Discussion

The board approved the contract in a 4-0 vote by Gritz, Vice Mayor Clif Vogt, Richard Simunek and Harold Shaw. Trustee David Jones was absent due to recuperating from surgery.

There were lengthy questions and comments before the vote.

From the audience, Barb Walter said she and others were concerned about the safety of officers not having dispatchers at the police station.

She quoted a text from former Hennessey mayor and police commissioner John Mesis who wrote: “Big mistake. Huge mistake. That on-site night dispatcher is critical to the safety of the people in this town and the surrounding rural areas.”

Walter said without dispatchers, officers would be alone with the “perps” at the police station after arrests.

Police Chief Aaron Pitts said the officer wouldn’t go to the police station, but directly to the Kingfisher County Criminal Justice Center in Kingfisher.

“So we wouldn’t have an officer in town during that time?” Walter asked.

Pitts said it would “only be 15 or 30 minutes,” but later commented that 911 could call out other officers when needed.

ive man on drugs and there were problems getting him subdued and in the car. A county deputy drove by, and stopped, and that made the situation much easier, Bruner said. He also said there are sometimes when two or three deputies are out at night.

Walter also asked the chief how other officers felt about the change.

He said he’d talked with Okarche police (who’d already switched to 911 dispatch) and they said it has worked well.

“What about our officers?” Walter asked.

More Police Officers Needed

The town’s biggest safety issue is the need for a second officer on each shift, said HPD Officer Mark Bruner.

Bruner told about a night he was on duty and had another officer riding with him when they made a stop that turned into “a big problem.” He said the driver was an extremely large and combat-

E-911 Costs

During her many comments and questions, Walter also asked if Hennessey citizens aren’t already paying for 911.

Gritz said there are 911 fees on monthly telephone and landline bills. The amount of those fees paid to 911 last year was not available at deadline.

Sales tax records show that county 911 also receives 9% of a county halfcent sales tax. The county also provides 911 offices in the new criminal justice center.

Hennessey’s monthly 911 “maintenance fee” for joining 911 will be $3,449.55, according to a fee schedule based on the town’s current population of 2,155.

The 2023 fee schedule will be: County pays 47% ($141,740.30) City of Kingfisher 32% ($95,217.06) Town of Hennessey 14% ($41,394.54) Town of Okarche 7% ($21,648.10) Total fees: $300,000.00.

On-site Dispatch Costs

Town Administrator Tiffany Tillman said costs for 24-7 police dispatchers is more than $100,000 a year and there will be an employee at the police station during the daytime Monday-Friday.

The change “isn’t all about money, it’s the technology” that’s best for the town, Tillman emphasized at last month’s meeting.

E-911 Director Ryan Deatherage was not at this month’s meeting, but did attend last month when he said he’d hoped the town could start Jan. 1.

There was no discussion this month about when the change starts.

At the Meeting

Trustees at the meeting were Mayor Bert Gritz, Vice Mayor Clif Vogt, Richard Simunek and Harold Shaw. Absent was Trustee David Jones due to a recent surgery.

Also at the board tables were Town Administrator Tiffany Tillman, Treasurer Shelley Burch and Clerk and Recording Secretary Kati Walters.

Staffers in the audience were Police Chief Aaron Pitts, HPD Officer Matthew Bruner, and HFD Firefighter Tyson Copeland along with Ladonna Sinning with the town’s auditing firm of Arledge and Associates, Edmond, and Jennifer Firgard with NODA, Enid.