COMMUNICATIONS
The Wood County Sheriff’s Office Communications Division is staffed by 20 full time Deputy Sheriffs. Along with dispatching for the various divisions of the Sheriff’s Office, the Deputies in this division also dispatch for 14 full and part-time law enforcement agencies as well as 17 EMS and 23 Fire stations throughout Wood County. Along with dispatching for various agencies these Deputies are responsible for various types of data collection; Warrants, L.E.A.D.S., calls for service, missing persons, B.O.L.O.’s, vehicle information, etc. The Wood County Sheriff’s Office also hosts the E-911 system, and handles an average of 3500 emergency cell phone calls monthly. The Deputies in the Communications Division are also responsible for the activation of Wood County’s Severe Weather Alert System, i.e. Snow Emergency levels, Tornado warnings and watches, and Thunderstorm warnings and watches.
Dispatchers in the Communications Division are the first line of information to Road Patrol Officers, and can often be a life line to officers on duty. These Dispatchers are trained in handling all levels of emergency calls, gathering information from callers and giving the information to units responding to a call, whether it is to Law Enforcement Officers or Fire and EMS personnel. Deputies in the Communications Division often coordinate with neighboring agencies during emergency situations.
Contact Information:
Director of Communications ~ 9-1-1 Coordinator ~ CAD/RMS/JMS Administrator
Douglas Houtz
Office: 419-354-9361
Email: dhoutz@woodcountyohio.gov
Communications Supervisor
Lieutenant Jeremy Holland
Office: 419-354-9347
Email: jholland@woodcountyohio.gov
Director of I.T.
Meredith Nicholson
Office: 419-354-9372
Email: mnicholson@woodcountyohio.gov