LE Desk renovations

An Airman from the 5th Civil Engineering Squadron cuts a hole into a ceiling tile during reconstruction of the Law Enforcement Desk office on Minot Air Force Base, N.D., Oct. 7, 2014. The LE Desk is the primary control center for all law enforcement-based responses here, and it is also the subordinate or backup control center for all security-based responses on base. (U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Airman Brittany Y. Bateman)

LE Desk renovations

An Airman from the 5th Civil Engineering Squadron cuts a hole into a ceiling tile during reconstruction of the Law Enforcement Desk office on Minot Air Force Base, N.D., Oct. 7, 2014. The LE Desk has been relocated to the fire department dispatch office until the renovations are finished. (U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Airman Brittany Y. Bateman)

LE Desk renovations

Airmen from the 5th Civil Engineering Squadron replace the ceiling tile of the Law Enforcement Desk on Minot Air Force Base, N.D., Oct. 7, 2014. The LE Desk has been relocated to the fire department dispatch office until the renovations are finished. (U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Airman Brittany Y. Bateman)

New and improved LE Desk

Published Oct. 14, 2014
By Senior Airman Brittany Y. Bateman
Minot Air Force Base Public Affairs

MINOT AIR FORCE BASE, N.D. -- Renovations to the Law Enforcement Desk started Sept. 15 and are estimated to be completed by mid-October or early November.

"The conversion from a single dispatch center to an Emergency Control Center was the driving force behind the renovation," said Staff Sgt. Daniel Baker, 5th Security Forces Squadron police services NCO in charge.

The law enforcement desk is the primary control center for all law enforcement-based responses on Minot Air Force Base, and it is also the subordinate or backup control center for all security-based responses on base.

The LE Desk has been relocated to the fire department dispatch office until the renovations are finished.

The 5th SFS desk sergeants monitor all the alarmed facilities on base; coordinate response plans for any incidents that occur during their tour of duty and provide timely notifications to base leadership.

The 5th Civil Engineer Squadron fire department will be relocating their dispatch office to the LE Desk, and the renovated ECC will foster improved dispatch capabilities between the 5th SFS desk sergeants and the 5th CES fire dispatchers.

"This combination of two control centers will eliminate time delays and increase response times and effectiveness," Baker said.

With the renovations, the desk sergeants will have a renewed sense of pride in their facility, Baker added. And the improved facility will also aid in the morale of the desk sergeants and patrolmen working out of it.

"The prior set up did not allow expansion of the LE capabilities," said Staff Sgt. Alexander Northrup, 5th SFS police services noncommissioned officer. "The previous office could not support the advances in technology that have been implemented over the years and was causing delays in the response times for our LE patrols."

The entire layout of the LE Desk is being changed to accommodate the fire department coming into the office space. There are multiple walls being torn down and a new server room being built.

"The walls are being repainted and patched, the flooring will be torn up and replaced, and a new drop ceiling was installed," Northrup said. "The wiring is being retooled and replaced by the 5th Communication Squadron. There was a lot of old wiring and unused wiring that was causing safety concerns."

Northrup also stated, they installed an upgraded backup system for the desk to ensure the response capability during power outages. New dispatch consoles were also ordered to replace the decrepit ones that had been in use for nearly 10 years.

"This renovation has been a much needed project for some time now," Baker said. "The desk sergeants have done an excellent job completing the LE mission with what they have had in the past, but it was definitely time for a fresh setup."