National Public Safety Telecommunicators Week April 9-15

Imagine never knowing what was going to be on the other end of the phone when you answered it. That is what your local 9-1-1 telecommunicators have trained for.

The men and women who answer 9-1-1 need to be prepared for anything. They are the “first” first responder on the scene and if they do not react quickly, ask the appropriate questions, calm the frantic caller, and send the right response then the entire call is off track.

April 9-15 is National Public Safety Telecommunicators Week and honors those who answer emergency calls, dispatch emergency personnel and equipment, and render life-saving assistance to the citizens across the nation.

In Washington County there are 14 telecommunicators with over 170 years of experience answering your every day.

The Communications staff includes Cara Sorrells, Sandy Lovetinsky, Teresa Todd, Melanie Larson, Issak Kleese, Shelley Reed-Wulf, Brittany Stutzman, Hunter Erwin, Delainey Parish, Riley Thomann, Rachel Swaffer, Carrie Rich, Lydia Houston, and Aspen Bromell.

We are extremely proud of the entire staff for their dedication. We also want to take the opportunity to thank those personnel that we communicate with everyday who help us do our job.

This includes the law enforcement officers, ambulance personnel, fire fighters, first responders, emergency management, tow truck operators, public health nurses, funeral home directors, emergency room personnel, public works and roads personnel, and animal control personnel just to name a few.

We are planning to honor these local behind the scenes heroes with special activities in the building throughout the week.