Message from Mayor Josh Losardo – July 24, 2026

With important contributions from Deputy Fire Chief/Fire Official Skip Paul

July 3rd’s severe storm put an extraordinary strain on 911 emergency communications, and we know many of you experienced real frustration. Calling 911 and having the phone continue to ring during an emergency is not something anyone should have to go through. We want to explain what happened and share some important guidance for the future.

First, an important distinction: Scotch Plains does not operate the 911 system. Emergency calls for our community are received and dispatched by the Union County Regional Communications Center. What follows is based on our Township’s after-action review and conversations with County communications staff.

The 911 response on July 3rd was not a technology failure. It was an overwhelming surge in call volume. Union County typically handles about 50 calls an hour. Between 7 p.m. and midnight that Friday, the county received 2,855 calls, more than 11 hours’ worth of normal volume, every hour, for five straight hours. Thousands of people across the county were experiencing — or believed they were experiencing — emergencies at the same moment.

Our firefighters, police, and EMS personnel were staffed and ready throughout the storm. But they can only be dispatched once a 911 call is received and entered into the system. The delay was in the call intake, not the response.

What residents should know going forward:

• Call 911 for any immediate threat to life, safety, or property — fire, medical emergencies, crashes with injuries, gas leaks, hazardous downed wires, or flooding entrapment. If you’re unsure whether it’s an emergency, call — dispatchers would rather rule it out than have you hesitate.
• Use PSE&G or municipal non-emergency lines for power outage reports, restoration timing, or storm damage that isn’t an immediate hazard. This keeps 911 open for true emergencies.
• If your call rings and rings, stay on the line. Hanging up and calling back adds new calls to the queue. During the storm, one single emergency generated five separate contacts — four calls and a text — before reaching a dispatcher, each counted separately against an already overwhelmed system.
• If your call disconnects, call back immediately.

The Township is now working with Union County to identify lessons learned. We’re deeply grateful to the dispatchers, police, firefighters, EMTs, public works crews, and utility workers who worked through the night to keep our community safe, and to residents for their patience.