Horrified neighbors watched the scene unfold and promptly dialed 911.
Then they waited. And waited — because no one answered the emergency call.
Other calls eventually went through. But Jersey Citypolice officers did not arrive at Taqueria Downtown until 15 minutes after some witnesses reported the crash, delayed by the missed call, according to records later obtained by The Jersey Journal.
The troubling instance of an emergency operator not answering a resident’s cry for help is not an isolated incident in the Hudson County city. It’s a symptom of a larger problem officials say they’re fixing, they announced March 27.
“For too long, our 911 center was asked to do a critical job without the leadership, staffing, or technology to do it well,” Mayor James Solomon said in a news release. “We’re changing that.”
The city will launch a new 911 system on May 14, officials said.
The new system will introduce digital audio and location-based call routing, meaning calls will be routed using the caller’s verified location. Operators can also exchange text messages with callers, including photos and videos of incidents, city officials said.
The text messaging capability will include limited translation services, officials added.
The upgrades are part of a $39.2 million contract that the city council voted on last year, according to city spokesman Nathaniel Styer. (Solomon was a councilman last year, before he was elected mayor in November.)
It will allow the city to take part in New Jersey’s statewide upgrade of its 911 service, according to Styer.
The previous mayoral administration had purchased 800 radios for the system upgrade, but left the equipment uninstalled and languishing in the public safety headquarters’ basement, he said.
Parking enforcement dispatch will also be relocated to the Jersey City Communications Center, which handles the city’s 911 emergency calls, non-emergency calls, and police and fire dispatch operations.
Currently, parking complaints must wait for an available police officer.
The system, which is 16 years old, routes 911 calls based on the nearest cell tower, which sometimes sends calls to the wrong municipality, according to Solomon.
Jersey City is also placing a police commander in the communications center across all shifts to oversee and coordinate police operations citywide, the mayor said. And two dispatch administrators will oversee training and quality.
City Council President Denise Ridley often hears from frustrated residents who experience long wait times and errors with the 911 system.
“These are not small inconveniences,” she said. “When someone calls 911, they’re often in the worst moment of their day, and they deserve a system that works.”
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