SUNBURY - Steve Reiner, who has been appointed by Northumberland County commissioners as acting public safety director, is confident he can help resolve some of the problems plaguing the 911 center and hopes to convince the county commissioners he is qualified to fill the position permanently.
The 43-year-old Kulpmont resident, who has served as the fiscal officer for the county Department of Public Safety for more than a year, succeeds Paul Froutz, who officially resigned Friday to pursue a "better opportunity" in public safety. Reiner will earn a salary of $42,766, which was the same pay received by Froutz, who served in the position since Sept. 29, 2008.
Froutz, 24, previously denied his resignation was related in any way to ongoing problems at the county 911 center. In an interview earlier this month, the Mount Carmel resident said he was resigning because he had received two job offers in the public safety field that he couldn't pass up.
Commissioner Vinny Clausi, who expressed confidence in Reiner, said the commissioners plan to appoint a permanent public safety director in three to six months.
Clausi said Reiner was interviewed by the commissioners and
Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency (PEMA) officials, who stated he was qualified for the position of acting public safety director. Clausi said the commissioners will evaluate Reiner's progress before appointing a permanent director.
Reiner, who has 15 years experience in the business and management profession, also served as a police officer in the local area for several years. He has a bachelor's degree in business administration and is working toward a degree in criminal justice with a concentration in emergency management and homeland security.
After Tuesday's commissioners' meeting, Reiner said he realizes there are some significant problems at the 911 center, but is confident they can all be resolved in time.
"It's really vital to work as a team when it comes to public safety," Reiner said. "I understand the concerns of firefighters, emergency medical services personnel and police. They are the men and women on the front lines who respond to the calls being dispatched from the 911 center. I met with PEMA officials last week to review all the policies and procedures for the 911 center and they plan on submitting recommendations to us based on our conversation. I want to meet with as many firefighters, EMTs and police as possible to get their views on the problems and I also plan on conducting weekly meetings with our staff to make sure we are all on the same page. I plan to have open communications with everyone in the county involved with public safety."
He added, "I appreciate the support the commissioners have given me by appointing me to this position. I know this isn't going to be an overnight fix. It will take time, but it's time to move forward and get rid of the negative publicity and attitude surrounding the 911 center and its employees. Change must take place. I know change is hard for some people, but it is required to make the entire 911 system better."
Assisting Reiner will be Bill Brown, who has been appointed acting 911 coordinator.
Further heat
At the March 15 commissioners' meeting, area fire officials, ambulance and other rescue personnel complained about late dispatch times, personnel being sent to the wrong addresses, mapping issues, inaccurate record keeping, lack of tones being activated for emergency calls and other problems dealing with the county's communications center.
Another common complaint is about inexperienced dispatchers being hired, including some personnel who have been characterized as "political hires." Others have complained about the commissioners' unwillingness to pay higher salaries to dispatchers, noting similar personnel in other counties receive $3 or $4 more per hour.
Although Froutz received the blunt of the complaints as public safety director, fire and emergency medical services officials are more angry at the commissioners for not responding to previous complaints made about the same issues.
On Tuesday, Elysburg Fire Chief Dennis Kroh and Elysburg Fire Company President and Assistant Fire Chief Harvey Boyer Jr. asked the commissioners for an update on the 911 center problems, while expressing concern about Reiner's appointment.
Commissioner Frank Sawicki told Kroh and Boyer, who were among various fire officials to express their opinions about the 911 center at the March 15 meeting, said, "We have been meeting to discuss radios and dispatching calls. We also addressed the pay for dispatchers during a work session, but we didn't reach a conclusion."
"We just can't give the dispatchers more money without fixing the other problems," Clausi said. "This isn't going to happen overnight and we need you guys (firefighters) to help us."
Boyer, who said Froutz told him dispatchers and other public safety employees were doing "the best they can," urged the commissioners not to make the public safety director appointment "political."
Sawicki responded, "There are no politics with public safety and there are no politics on this board."
Kroh then returned to the podium and said he strongly disagreed with Sawicki's statement.
Sawicki agreed to meet with Kroh and Boyer later this week.