Central Dispatch

Sergeant Brian Shameklis | (413) 583-8305 ext.2225

The Ludlow Police Department’s public safety dispatchers are responsible for receiving and processing 911 emergency calls and requesting police, fire, and medical response. Dispatchers determine the nature, seriousness, and location of the emergency, set priorities, and dispatch police, fire, ambulance, or other emergency units as necessary and in accordance with established procedures. Ludlow Police dispatchers are also Emergency Medical Dispatch (E.M.D) certified and will provide pre-arrival instructions and care for all medical emergency-related calls. These instructions may include but are not limited to C.P.R., the Heimlich maneuver, and basic care and first-aid.

Public safety dispatchers monitor and operate a variety of communications equipment, including the emergency 911 system, radio consoles, computer systems, surveillance monitors, and business telephones in this 24-hour facility.

We maintain contact with all units on assignment, maintain the current status and location of police, fire, and other emergency units, monitor surrounding regional, county, state, and federal agencies, and enter, update, and retrieve information from a variety of computer systems, including state and national criminal justice systems.

Dispatchers also continuously communicate with field officers requesting information regarding vehicle registration, driving records, criminal history, and warrants and then relay this data to the officer. Other duties include taking routine non-emergency business calls and telephone calls from other law enforcement agencies requesting or providing assistance and maintaining files, books, logs, and criminal records. They also assist walk-in customers with a variety of requests regarding public safety issues. Dispatchers routinely enter all Restraining Orders issued through the court system and any Emergency Restraining Orders issued by an on-call judge.

Do Not Abuse 911

If you dialed 911 in error DO NOT hang up the telephone. Explain to the 9-1-1 dispatcher that you dialed by mistake and there is no emergency. A dispatcher will call you back if you hang up and verify if there is an emergency. If you fail to answer your telephone, a police officer will be dispatched to check on your status to verify no emergency exists.

Please do not abuse 911, it may just be your life that needs saving.