LIGHTNING KNOCKS OUT SMALL TOWN'S 911 SYSTEM.

Byline: Michael Coit Daily News Staff Writer

Dispatchers are juggling radios and phones in this river valley town after thunderstorms knocked out the aging console used 24 hours a day for police, fire and public works crews.

While other areas in Ventura County hit hard by a barrage of lightning strikes Wednesday have recovered, Santa Paula is grappling with makeshift emergency radio operations.

Cmdr. Bob Gonzales said Santa Paula appeared out of the woods as the thunderstorms moved out of the county on a rare summer day of lightning and heavy rains. But one last storm packed a punch, striking the radio antenna atop the Santa Paula Police Department.

``The last hit was probably the greatest and it was right over the city,'' Gonzales said. ``The radio and phones were completely burned out.''

Dispatcher Belinda Croswhite had a phone to her ear. The electrical surge caused her teeth to chatter, brought on a headache and some aching on her left side. There were no serious injuries, however, and Croswhite completed her shift, playing an important role in protecting the public and restoring city services, Gonzales said.

With no telephone service, including 911 calls, from 5 p.m. until after 11 p.m. Wednesday, police patrols and citizen police volunteers were the primary link for police or fire calls.

For instance, Gonzales said there was a burglary in progress when the outage occurred. The resident, a woman, heard burglars but couldn't get through on a 911 call. She called a son who went to the station to alert police, who alerted a unit in the area. In the meantime, the woman contacted a citizens patrol, which checked the home and found the burglars had gone.

Gonzales said police also were delayed in responding to a call on an attempted suicide. When a family member couldn't get through on a 911 call, a call was placed to a relative with the department, who notified the station. A patrol unit responded and intervened.

With phone service restored, dispatchers have been using a converted patrol car radio.

They are limited to one rather than two phones, complicating the task of answering a total of 20 phone lines. There are four lines for emergency 911 calls and the remainder are for business calls.

``You've got to juggle. They prioritize the calls,'' Gonzales said.

Further, with only one phone, police and fire calls must go on the same frequency.

``It can be confusing,'' Gonzales said. ``Everyone's been pretty professional about it. They've cut down on the more mundane conversations.''

If the 20-year-old Motorola radio system can't be repaired, Gonzales said, the city faces spending $100,000 for a new system.

``We had anticipated upgrading, but not for a couple of years,'' he said. ``It's not budgeted so it would have to be an emergency purchase.''