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During one 10-month period, from January to October 2005, about 27,000 calls to city dispatchers at the 911 center went unanswered, police spokesman Tetzell Tillery said.

27,000 calls went unanswered but the mayor all clear?

Okay, let me rephrase myself. The mayor stated that there were sufficient resources available. I have an emergency services background, both in response and management. I could easily staff a call center 24/7/365 with 68 dispatchers and maintain a minimum of seven dispatchers actually answering calls at any given time. Are seven dispatchers enough to handle the call volume? I would not know without looking at the numbers. There may also be issues with the ability of the communications equipment itself to handle multiple phone calls.

All I said was that the mayor's statement that 68 dispatchers was enough to have more than one person answering calls was correct. The problem is not funding. It is management. At this time, increased funding is not indicated because allocated resources are already being squandered. First, improve the efficiency of the system so that money is not being wasted. I've worked in government service for years, and the first dodge of the incompetent and lazy is to claim that the problem is funding levels. No governmental entity will ever admit to being adequately funded, although many are over-funded.