Index
List of Municipalities
911 Dispatch
Fire Agencies
EMS
Police Agencies
Websites
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This file will primarily concentrate on the dispatch systems of the Public Safety Agencies in Albany County NY.
Albany County is divided into cities, towns, villages. Some towns are further divided into fire protection districts. Every area of the county gets a emergency response from someone. The purpose of this file is to explain who protects what area, and who dispatches whom. This can get very complicated, but I will try to make things as simple as possible.
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Albany County - 524 square miles - 292,000 residents - rolling wooded hills
Cities, Towns, and Villages in Albany County, New York - 04 Oct 00 from www.capitolimpact.comThere are no unincorporated areas in Albany County. All areas are located within a city, village, or town. The villages are considered to be part of the Town in which they are located (yet the Villages are seperate local government units). Therefore, all areas within a Village are part of the Village, and also part of the Town. The Town may or may not supply school, highway, or police services to the Village. (?corrections - correct in general?). I just bring this up because it helps to explain how the 911 system operates.
Albany 94,305 City Altamont 1,743 Village Berne 2,984 Town Bethlehem 28,660 Town Coeymans 8,170 Town Cohoes 16,333 City Colonie 76,000 Town Colonie 8,255 Village Green Island 2,349 Village Guilderland 30,050 Town Knox 2,657 Town Menands 4,626 Village New Scotland 8,964 Town Ravena 3,591 Village Rensselaerville 1,933 Town Voorheesville 3,091 Village Watervliet 10,340 City Westerlo 3,201 Town
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911 System Information
The Primary PSAPs in Albany County are - County Dispatch + Albany + Colonie + Guilderland + Bethlehem. In other words - if you dial 911 from a location in the City of Albany, the call will be routed to the Albany 911 Communications Center - if you call 911 from anywhere in the Town of Colonie, you will get connected to the Colonie 911 Comm Center - if you dial from within the Town of Guilderland you get Guilderland 911 Comm Center - if you dial 911 from anywhere in the Town of Bethlehem you get the Bethlehem 911 Comm Center - if you call from any other location in Albany County you will ring into the Albany County 911 Comm Center which is located in Vorheesville.
The only exceptions to this are - cellular 911 calls go to the State Police station in Albany; 911 calls from North Bethlehem go to the Guilderland 911 Comm Center; 911 calls from Westerloo go to the Greene County PSAP at State Police Station F in Leeds (who forward the call to Greene County Sheriff's Dispatch in Catskill).
Secondary PSAPs are located at Coeymans/Ravena, Watervliet, Cohoes, and Greene Island. Calls to the Secondary PSAPs are forwarded from the County Comm Center.
The County 911 Comm Center receives 911 calls from Coeymans, Ravena, Watervliet, Cohoes, Greene Island, New Scotland, Knox, Renselleaurville, and Voorheesville. EMD is conducted for all EMS calls. Albany County Sheriffs units are dispatched from the County 911 Center via 159.36. The 5 ALS units operated by the County ALS Program are also dispatched. Fire Control is colocated at the County 911 Center and they use the fire radio frequency of 154.415 to dispatch the following Fire & EMS agencies : Onesquethaw, New Salem, Voorheesville, Westerloo, Medusa, Knox, and Rensselerville.
Exceptions - The Medusa FD is primarily dispatched by the Greene County Dispatch Center via 46.14 - TriVillage/Preston Hollow FD is dispatched by Albany County, Schoharie County, and Greene County - the TriVillage Chief is "33-1" - part of Green Island might be in Rensselear County (Villages in NY can span Town and County borders) - 911 calls from the Capitol Complex are answered at the Albany 911 Center
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LIST OF FIRE PROTECTION AGENCIES
All areas of Albany County are protected by a fire department. There are no "unprotected" areas as you might find in Idaho, South Carolina, or Montana. Each agency listed below has its own Fire Chief, its own budget, its own funding sources, its own operating procedures, and its own rules and regulations.
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Sources of Info - [Fire Protection Districts from www.census.gov/govs/www/gid.html - Sept 2000 - in capital letters] + [2000 Directory of Fire and EMS]
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Alphabetical List of Fire Departments and Fire Districts
Albany FD
Altamont FD - a village FD physically located within the Town of Guilderland
BERNE FIRE DISTRICT
BOGHT COMMUNITY FIRE DIST - in Town of Colonie
COEYMANS FIRE DIST
COEYMANS CREEK FIRE DIST 4 - protected by Ravena FD
COEYMANS HOLLOW FIRE DIST
Cohoes FD
Colonie Village FD - in Colonie
DELMAR FIRE DIST - in Bethlehem
East Berne FD - in Berne
ELMWOOD PARK FIRE DIST - ?in Colonie - ?not in Albany County
ELSMERE FIRE DIST - in Bethlehem
FORT HUNTER FIRE DISTRICT - in Guilderland
Fuller Road - in Colonie
General Electric Company - Selkirk
Green Island
GUILDERLAND CENTER FIRE DIST - in Guilderland
GUILDERLAND FIRE DISTRICT - in Guilderland
KNOX FIRE DIST
Latham FD - in Colonie
Maplewood FD - in Colonie
MCKOWNVILLE FIRE DISTRICT - in Guilderland
Menands FD - in Colonie
MIDWAY FIRE DIST - in Colonie
New Salem VFD - in New Scotland (not listed in www.census.gov info nor 2K ND info)
North Bethlehem FD - in Bethlehem
Onesquethaw FD - in New Scotland
Ravena FD
Rensselaerville FD
SCHUYLER HEIGHTS FIRE DIST - in Colonie
SELKIRK FIRE DIST - in Bethlehem
Shaker Road Loudon FD - in Colonie
SLINGERLANDS FIRE DISTRICT - in Bethlehem
STANFORD HEIGHTS FIRE DIST - in Colonie
VERDOY FIRE DIST - in Colonie
Watervliet FD
Watervliet Arsenal FD
WEST ALBANY FIRE DISTRICT - in Colonie
Westerlo FD
WESTMERE FIRE DIST - in Guilderland
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Listing by Town, City, or Village
Albany - City - Albany FD
Altamont - Village - Altamont FD
Berne - Town - Berne FPD + East Berne FPD
Bethlehem - Town - Delmar FPD + Elsmere FPD + North Bethlehem FPD + Selkirk FPD + Slingerlands FPD
Coeymans - Town - Coeymans FPD + Coeymans Hollow FPD + Coeymans Creek FPD 4 + (Ravena Village FD)
Cohoes - Village - Cohoes FD
Colonie - Town - Boght FPD + + ?Elmwood Park FPD + Fuller Road FD + Latham FD + Maplewood FD + Midway FD + Schuyler Heights FD + Shaker Road Louden FD + Stanford Heights FD + Verdoy FD + West Albany FD + (Menands FD) + (Colonie Village FD)
Colonie - Village - Colonie FD
Green Island - Village - Green Island FD
Guilderland - Town - Fort Hunter FPD + Guilderland FPD + Guilderland Center FPD + McKownville FPD + Westmere FPD
Knox - Town - Knox FPD
Menands - Village - Menands FD
New Scotland - Town - Onesquethaw FD + (Voorheesville Village FD) + New Salem VFD
Ravena - Village - Ravena FD
Rensselaerville - Town - Rennselaerville FD
Voorheesville - Village - Voorheesville FD
Watervliet - City - Watervliet FD
Westerlo - Town - Westerlo FD
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If you are wondering what the difference between a "Fire Department" and a "Fire District" is - a Fire Department (FD) is part of a city, town, or village - the Fire Chief of a FD is usually appointed by the elected officials of the local government unit - a FD is primarily funded by the local municipal taxes.
A FD can also by a independant, private not-for-profit corporation which selects its own Chief from amongst its members. This type of FD receives funds from the local government and from fund-raising events. Some of the Fire Departments in the Town of Colonie might be this type of independant FD.
On the other hand, a Fire Protection District (FPD) is an independant governmental agency which protects (a section of) a city, town or village. The Chief of a FPD is chosen by the elected officials (fire commissioners) of the FPD. A FPD is funded by a FPD tax which is imposed on the residents of the FPD.
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EMS in Albany County
Emergency Medical Services (Ambulance Services) are provided persuant to state laws and regulations, and generally accepted national guidelines. Each municipality arranges its own EMS. Albany MedFlight operates a medical helicopter from the Albany Airport 24 - 7.
Albany County Sheriff Office Paramedic Program - 6 paramedics are on duty in locations around the county as part of this joint county/local program. Local towns can purchase coverage from this program if desired. Single paramedics in small trucks (Jeep Cherokees) operate from 5 locations. 1 roving paramedic covers countywide. See http://capital.net/~ems2/ for more info. The program started in 1996. 4 towns were initially covered. Now they cover 6 towns - 50,000 people - 350 square miles - 5500 calls per year - use 6 vehicles - have 47 people on staff (FT + PT). Medic 1 at Helderberg Amb - Medic 2 at Delmar FD - Medic 3 at Bethlehem Amb - Medic 4 at Ravena rescue - Medic 5 at New Scotland/Onesquethaw Rescue. Units are dispatched by Fire Control on 154.415R. Sheriff's Deputies do not routinely respond to all EMS calls in their patrol area.
Albany, City of - FD ALS Engines and Ladders summon private ambulances for transport (Mohawk Ambulance Company)
Altamont, Village of - Altamont Rescue Squad Inc
Berne, Town of - Berne Rescue Squad provides BLS ambulances - ALS by SO Program (1 paramedic on duty at Berne Fire Station equipped with a small truck)
Bethlehem, Town of - Bethlehem Volunteer Ambulance provides EMT-I ambulances + Delmar Rescue provides BLS ambulances
Coeymans, Town of - covered by Ravena Rescue Squad
Cohoes, City of - City FD rolls a ALS Engine with transpo by Mohawk Ambulance
Colonie, Town of - Town ALS Ambulance Service + Stanford Heights VFD (operate a EMS van for all EMS calls in their area)
Green Island, City of - City FD provides a ALS Engine with Mohawk Ambulance Service providing a transport unit (ambulance)
Guilderland, Town of - Guilderland EMS is ALS + Western Turnpike Rescue Squad provides BLS ambulances
Knox, Town of - no ALS - BLS amb provided by Berne Rescue Squad
Menands, Village of - ???
New Scotland, Town of - Onesquethaw Rescue Squad provides BLS ambos - ALS by SO ALS Program
Ravena, Village of - Ravena Rescue Squad provides EMT-I ambualnces to Ravena and Coeymans
Rensselaerville, Town of - Rensselaerville Ambulance
Voorheesville, Village of - Voorheesville Area Ambulance
Watervliet, City of - FD provides a ALS Engine and Mohawk Ambulance provides a BLS ambulance
Westerlo, Town of - Westerlo Rescue Squad
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from www.capitolimpact.com - October 2000
Law Enforcement Agencies in Albany County, New York
Agency - City - County - Type
Albany Co Coroner's Office - Albany - Albany - Med. Ex./Coroner
Albany Co Sheriff's Office - Albany - Albany - Sheriff's Office
Albany Police Dept - Albany Albany Municipal Police
Altamont Police Dept - Altamont Albany Municipal Police
Bethlehem Police Dept - Delmar Albany Municipal Police
Campus Security Dept - Albany Albany Special Police
Coeymans Police Dept - Ravena Albany Municipal Police
Cohoes Police Dept - Cohoes Albany Municipal Police
Colonie Town Police - Latham Albany Municipal Police
Director of Law Enforcement - Albany Albany Special Police
Div of Law Enforcement - Albany Albany Special Police
Green Island Police Dept - Green Island Albany Municipal Police
Guiderland Twp Police - Guilderland Albany Municipal Police
Menands Police Dept - Menands Albany Municipal Police
New York State Police - Albany Albany State Police
Ravena Police Dept - Ravena Albany Municipal Police
State Capitol Police - Albany Albany Special Police
Watervliet Police Dept - Watervliet Albany Municipal Police
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Websites
Albany County has their website at www.albanycounty.com
County ALS Unit is at http://capital.net/~ems2/ - has photos of Bethlehem R Sqd Bld and Ravena R Sqd Bld
Albany FD is barely online at www.ci.albant.ny.us
Albany PD is at www.apdonline.org - 334 staff - SCUBA team
Town of Bethlehem - has Bethlehem PD
Delmar Fire - January 2000 last update
Elsmere FD at business website
Fuller Road FD at www.fire-ems.net
Selkirk FD at www.fire-ems.net
Slingerlands FD at www.fire-ems.net
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File created - 7 October 2000 - Updated - 17Oct00 (EMS) - 02Nov00 - New Salem VFD
Find websites for helo amb + SAR + R Sqds + PDs - any local PDs dispatched on 159.36R (probably not) - review SP vs SO cover areas - confirm that R sqds are dispatched on 154.415