City of Lawton addressing shortages of personnel, including E-911 dispatchers

City Manager Michael Cleghorn said while rising COVID-19 numbers are contributing to the problem, city departments already were facing personnel shortages because they are having trouble recruiting applicants. Those shortages are coming in essential services beyond police and fire, to include divisions responsible for repairing water and sewer lines, and city streets.

Friday, administrators confirmed Lawton was reaching what Cleghorn called “critical staffing levels,” with some departments experiencing greater-than-normal people out and unfilled positions. At one time, the city had 22 police officers, four firefighters and several general employees out due to COVID-19, officials said Monday. Cleghorn said while masks and social distancing mandates had been relaxed as the pandemic eased, those requirements have been reimposed for everyone entering city facilities.

But, the outages continue to make it difficult to operate some divisions, to include emergency dispatching and the Public Works and Public Utilities departments (where water, sewer and streets-related activities are handled), he said.

The city is at least 10 dispatchers short in the emergency dispatching center, a problem it has had for months and the reason the city increased salaries there before the fiscal year began July 1, said Deputy City Manager Dewayne Burk. But, with continuing shortages made worse by COVID-19, administrators have implemented a “loaned employee program” for emergency communications, using firefighters and former dispatchers.

“Approximately 15 staff members have been loaned to be on dispatch consoles since Aug, 2,” Cleghorn said.

Burk, a retired Lawton Fire chief, said it is not the first time Lawton firefighters have dispatched calls. Firefighters used to handle all fire-related dispatching calls before all dispatching functions were merged in the 1990s.

Burk said firefighters only work fire-related calls, with department officials estimating those temporary dispatchers are handling about 25 percent of the load a trained emergency dispatcher handles. Burk said fire calls are less numerous than are police-related calls, and firefighters are more familiar with the nuances related to fire calls, making it easier for them to dispatch.

“Firefighters were the most logical,” Burk said, adding firefighters duties are very focused.

Deputy Fire Chief Jared Williams, who worked a dispatch shift Sunday to ensure he was familiar with the process, said the loaned program is being adjusted so fire apparatus remains available for calls. He, Burk and Cleghorn said claims that some fire trucks have had to stand down because of inadequate staffing are untrue.

For example, Williams said ladder trucks, normally staffed with three firefighters, are being staffed with only a driver and should the apparatus be needed, firefighters are available on the scene for operations when the driver arrives.

“No delayed responses,” he said, adding the department is being careful to ensure citizens and firefighters are protected.

City administrators have received a notice of pending grievance from the firefighters association about the situation, Cleghorn said, adding the city will work through the issue with the firefighters union and department leadership.

While Lawton police officers haven’t been part of the loaned program, police administrators said some officers have worked in the emergency dispatch areas, to include officers in the on-the-job injury program who are assigned desk duties until they can return to their traditional duties. In recent months, patrol officers have helped field calls at the emergency communications center on low volume days, answering citizen questions so a police officer is not physically required to respond to a call.