911: PROPONENTS ADDRESS QUESTIONS

With a vote on installation of an "Enhanced 911" emergency system in Cape Girardeau County less than a week away, supporters of the measure are attempting to clear up confusion about the proposal.

"There is some confusion," said Sgt. Carl Kinnison of the Cape Girardeau Police Department. "People think that what they see happening on the 911 television program is happening in Cape Girardeau, and it's not."

The city of Cape Girardeau has had a basic 911 system since 1973, Kinnison said, but it is not an "enhanced" system one with the capability to display the caller's location to the emergency dispatcher. Residents who live in the county currently have to dial a seven-digit number for emergency assistance.

The E-911 system, which, if approved, will be countywide, automatically displays the caller's telephone number and location to the dispatcher, a feature that, among other advantages, shortens response time. The E-911 system is featured on the television show "Rescue 911."

Voters will decide the issue in Tuesday's election. It requires a simple majority to pass.

Kinnison, a member of the county's six-member E-911 Committee, said Tuesday that confusion also exists about each resident's monthly cost for the system.

Members of the committee have spent recent months meeting with civic, school and church groups to discuss the E-911 system's advantages and to answer questions about the proposal.

A citywide informational meeting Tuesday drew few people, but Kinnison said attendance was probably low due to the number of similar meetings already held. Informational meetings in rural areas of the county have drawn large numbers of people, he said.

If voters approve installation of E-911, Cape Girardeau County residents will pay a service fee of 15 percent, or an average of $1.35 per month of their basic phone bill for the first two years to cover the cost of installation. Businesses would pay about $3.45 per month.

The fee would be re-evaluated at that time to pay for maintenance of the system, he said.

"Many people hear 15 percent and stop listening right there," Kinnison said. "They don't realize that the maximum basic phone bill in the county is $9.10. No residential customer would be paying more than $1.35 per month."

The 15 percent fee does not apply to long-distance charges or other optional services. If the system gains voter approval, fees would begin to be assessed possibly in December, he said. Installation would take 18 months to two years to complete.

Brian Miller, emergency coordinator for the county and chairman of the committee, said the key advantage to the E-911 system is that callers do not have to be able to convey their address to the dispatcher.

"You'll get help regardless of whether you can speak or whether you know your address," Miller said. "You'll get a response."

Miller said the enhanced system is of particular benefit to children, people who babysit in others' homes, and those with medical emergencies that prevent them from speaking.

Kinnison said that over the weekend the Cape Girardeau Police Department received a 911 call during which the caller moaned a few times as if in pain and then hung up before giving a name or address.

"This type of thing happens routinely," he said.

Miller said groups the committee has met with in outlying areas of the county are for the most part favorable toward the system.

"The vast majority of people have expressed their support," Miller said. "The people who do not have 911 now are very anxious to see it happen."

Kinnison said Cape Girardeau residents have an additional reason to consider voting for E-911.

The city's 18-year-old 911 equipment is in need of repair or replacement, he said. "We're at a point where we need to move in some direction. We need to make some changes," he said.