Fire Communication Center (FCC)

Ventura County's new Fire Communications Center (FCC) brings county residents the latest technology for fast, efficient handling of their 911 fire and medical calls.

Completed in November of 2006, FCC serves more than 600,000 citizens. It dispatches for 31 fire stations in the unincorporated areas of Ventura County, as well as Camarillo, Ojai, Port Hueneme, Thousand Oaks, Simi Valley and Moorpark. In addition, FCC dispatches for fire stations in Ventura, Santa Paula and Fillmore, and for private ambulance companies.

On February 12, 2007, members of the Board of Supervisors, officials from participating local governments, and fire and rescue personnel gathered for a dedication and ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new building.

FCC is the culmination of six years of planning, nearly $15 million in buildings and equipment, a lot of hard work, and the support of the Board of Supervisors and countless citizens.

FCC dispatchers answer more than 250,000 phone calls a year - roughly 685 calls a day - and send emergency personnel to more than 40,000 incidents a year. The facility is staffed seven days a week, 24 hours a day, with seven professional public safety dispatchers and one supervising public safety dispatcher.

The FCC building encompasses 16,000 square feet - nearly triple the size of the previous dispatch center. In addition to the dispatch center, it includes offices, a training room and thousands of square feet of computer systems used to support emergency communications. The building also features comfortable sleeping and break quarters, ample kitchen facilities and an exercise room. These added amenities create an appealing work environment for dispatchers, who work 24-hour shifts.

One of the greatest benefits of the new FCC is state-of-the-art technology that allows dispatchers to see the closest available fire vehicles and ambulances and send them where they're most urgently needed. Incoming 911 calls are displayed on computerized maps. Fire engines and ambulances are tracked with a Global Positioning System and dispatched according to location of the calls.

"With these systems, citizens can rest assured they're getting the closest available resource and a fast, efficient response to their fire and medical calls," said Fire Chief Bob Roper.