With the advent of 311 call centers, local governments are changing the way their communities are served. Initially designed to off-load non-emergency calls from 911 services and provide better access to government services, 311 call centers have become increasingly sophisticated in the services they offer. Enthusiastic citizen response and increasing reliance on 311 has expanded the role of these call centers from a gateway to day-to-day government services to a disaster preparedness and response center in times of crisis.
Lagan 311 offers the flexibility and scalability necessary to support a coordinated response between 311, 911, Emergency Operations Center (ECO) and other outside agencies resulting in distribution of consistent, quality information; the ability to focus resources on where they could help most; quick response to emergencies; and the ability to return to pre-disaster call levels quickly. In addition, the ability to track information as it happens streamlines reporting to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and ensures compliance for budget recovery.
Beyond the Traditional Call Center - Customer Success
Being able to use the same 311 call center system for daily operations and emergency situations is not only efficient, but essential. Introducing a new and unfamiliar system during the stressful time of a disaster adds unnecessary complexity. The key is a flexible and scalable technology solution. One that is easy to use and update so that staff can quickly get up to speed, with excellent reporting to document results. Lagan has developed such a solution. See how below in these customer examples:
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The City of Hampton, VA put its award-winning 311 call center to the test when Hurricane Isabel approached the region in 2003 and a mandatory evacuation was issued for all low-lying areas. Two days prior to landfall Hampton’s 311 call center went from averaging 650 calls a day to 1,100. Over the next two weeks the center received over 21,000 calls – four times the average. Residents turned to the 311 call center for trusted information and 911 services were spared tens of thousands of non-emergency calls enabling them to focus their resources where they were most needed. In fact, the City of Hampton was the only jurisdiction in the region whose 911 service was back to normal call volumes in two weeks. Other regions struggled for months to get back to pre-disaster levels. Download this case study to learn more.
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Broward County, FL has leveraged its call center infrastructure to build a Vulnerable Citizen Registry across 23 municipalities for disaster preparedness. The registry provides city and county agencies with enough data to offer quick responses to an at-risk population in a pending disaster. Citizens can sign up for the registry through the call center, the web and in person at a local city office. The registry today includes 2,300 residents and is integrated with a geographic information system (GIS) making it possible to locate these citizens in a Fire Map Grid.
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The City of Minneapolis, MN relied on its 311 call center to help respond to one of the City’s worst tragedies—the I-35W bridge collapse—on August 1, 2007. Within minutes calls began coming into the 311 call center. During the first few days, 311 call volume doubled and call center hours were extended. A video monitoring system provided 311 call center operators with real-time information from the scene, the city website directed all media to call 311 for information and the call center remained in constant contact with the Emergency Operations Center (EOC). The 311 call center team was able to update its knowledge base with up-to-the minute responses to far-ranging and urgent requests from the media and general public including missing persons and injured lists, disaster site information, alternate traffic routes and offers of donations. Download this case study to learn more.
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Visit our Resource Library to download case studies on Lagan 311 customers.