Hot Springs opting out of 911 merger with Garland County

HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – The city of Hot Springs has decided to opt out of the decision to merge its 911 call center with Garland County’s.

Hot Springs Mayor Pat McCabe said this was a tough decision that involved many factors but noted safety will always be the number one priority, with money being a distant second.

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The city of Hot Springs would have received $500,000 from the state if it were to merge its 911 center with the county’s, a price city officials said is not worth the consolidation if it means slowing down safety.

“We like to deal with issues as fast as possible,” Hot Springs Fire Chief Edward Davis said. “Get those things resolved and allow people to return to their vacations or their lives and do it in a peaceful manner.”

Which is exactly how Hot Springs local Seth Louton, experienced dialing 911 in the past. Saying that all three officers who showed up once he called were very prompt at getting there, nice, and really helped him out.

However, the consolidation has Louton wondering how much this would benefit him in a case of an emergency. He said the plan needs to go back to the drawing board.

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Which is something that the city of Hot Springs agrees with, but has yet to successfully appeal from the consolidation officially.

“I think the state of Arkansas made a mistake when they denied the appeal that we made to keep two dispatchers here,” Davis said.

Now, the 911 call center is in the Hot Springs Police Station. If the merge were to happen, it would move to the Garland County 911 emergency communications center.

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