By Katie Nelson, Contra Costa Times (California)

LIVERMORE — Citing increased calls and numerous cases of overlapping boundaries, the Livermore-Pleasanton Fire Department moved its emergency communications and dispatch services to Lawrence Livermore Laboratory last week.

According to a press release from the Livermore-Pleasanton Fire Department, the fire department moved from the Livermore Police Department to the Alameda County Regional Communications Center to the lab July 31.

Also, the Alameda County ambulance provider to the Livermore-Pleasanton region, Paramedics Plus, is now being dispatched by the regional communications center.

By moving the fire department’s dispatch center, the monitoring of the status and location of the regional fire resources in one dispatch center will allow agencies to send the closest, most appropriate resource to emergency calls, the press release added.

Livermore-Pleasanton Battalion Chief Joe Testa said it will be nice to be on the same page with other emergency and fire department units when dispatched to a scene.

Information will not have to be repeated, and services can be provided more quickly, he added.

“Communication is key,” said Testa. “We used to look at our own worlds when we would get dispatched to a call. Now the scope is a little bigger and we are all on the same channel.”

The move for the department’s dispatch services was approved by both the Livermore and the Pleasanton city councils in June.

The Alameda County Regional Communications Center is a multi-agency fire and EMS specific communications center and dispatches to numerous fire departments including Alameda County Fire Departments, Fremont Fire Department and Camp Parks Fire Department.

The move from one location to the other went smoothly, the press release stated. No service was disrupted.

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