“WestCom” – 911 Fire & EMS Dispatch for Houston’s West Side
The Harris Fort Bend ESD #100 (ESD100) dispatch communications center, known as “WestCom” is a piece of Greater Houston Area’s critical infrastructure that provides dispatching for multiple fire departments and EMS agencies on the West side of Houston. WestCom employs a staff that operates on 24 hour shifts with a total of four shift schedules. Please see our careers page for opportunities serving in the WestCom telecommunications center.
An Innovative Facility
The WestCom dispatch communications center is an 11,064 square-foot facility that is located on 4.1 acres on the Northeast corner of South Peek Road and Beechnut Street. The facility is sized in anticipation of population growth and the corresponding increase in 911 call volume over the next several years throughout the region. The site contains a dedicated self-supporting radio tower and an elevated structure capable of withstanding winds of up to 200 MPH. The site also contains multiple backup electrical generators with different fuel sources to guarantee operations at all times. There is additional land on the site reserved for the future Community Volunteer Fire Department Station 5.
The Redundant Dispatch Center
The original WestCom site located in Community Volunteer Fire Department Station 4 will remain ready at all times as a redundant dispatch center in case any technological or communication outages occur at the new facility. It will also provide overflow capacity to allow for additional dispatchers for major events such as hurricanes or winter storms to accomodate increased call volume throughout the region.
