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Leaders in NW Iowa county, city dispute 911 protocol

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January 13th, 2014 by Ric Hanson

FONDA, Iowa (AP) — A police chief in northwest Iowa has been cut off from emergency dispatch communications following a dispute with a county sheriff over the proper response protocol for emergency calls. Pocahontas County Sheriff Bob Lampe recently issued a memorandum that says employees should not communicate with Fonda Police Chief Alex Leu on radio traffic.

The Des Moines Register reports Leu posted about the situation on the Facebook page for Fonda, a city about 90 miles east of Sioux City. He listed his city-issued cellphone number with the post. Lampe says Leu is not authorized to respond to emergency medical calls outside of city limits. Leu, who is a state-certified emergency medical technician, disputes that. He says he can often get to a scene quicker than a county deputy.