City adjusting to changes in dispatching

    City residents who have a non-emergency issue and want to deal with the Imperial Police Department should be aware of two important phone numbers.
    As of Aug. 10, the county no longer dispatches for the police department or non-emergency utility calls. City officials have since established a process for residents to contact the police or utility personnel, said Clerk/Administrator Jo Leyland.
    If it’s an after-hours utility issue such as a backed-up sewer, electrical outage or water leak, customers should call 308-882-6414.
    Residents who want to report a law enforcement issue to the police department directly should call 308-882-4400, which is the police office landline.
    Leyland said the city has recently purchased flip phones for all four officers. If the officer on duty is not physically in the office at 637 Broadway, the call will forward to his flip phone, she said.
    There is a slight glitch in the process right now if the officer is already on the phone, and another person dials 882-4400—it will go to a recording.
    City officials are working with the phone company to get those calls to roll over to another one of the phones, Leyland said.
    “If it’s not an emergency, they can always call back” in a few minutes, she said.
    She emphasized if it is an emergency and a law officer is needed, it may be best to call 911. The county dispatch will send the sheriff or a deputy in those situations.
    The county continues to dispatch for fire and ambulance calls that come from city residents, as they always have.
    Regarding after-hours utility calls, Leyland said an employee is on call 24 hours a day and someone always has that phone when a customer dials 882-6414. During office hours (7:30-4:30), customers should call the city office with utility concerns, 308-882-4368.
    If an electrical outage happens in a storm and others in the neighborhood are also experiencing an outage, Leyland said she hopes customers realize if there is no immediate answer at the 882-6414 number that workers are likely out locating the problem.

To read more on this and other stories, please log in or subscribe to the digital edition. https://etypeservices.com/Imperial%20RepublicanID359/