National Public Safety Telecommunicator's Week
Incident #: Date of Incident: 4/10/2012 Issuing Officer: AC Schaeffer
Narrative:
The Spokane Fire Department Communication Center (CCC) is celebrating the week of April 8-14, 2012 as National Public Safety Telecommunicator's Week! This week, sponsored by the Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials (APCO) International and celebrated annually, honors the thousands of men and women who respond to emergency calls for help, dispatch emergency professionals and equipment, and render life-saving assistance to the world's citizens. "What is the location of your emergency?" starts the process that defines the nature of the emergency which in turn sets the emergency response in motion. These Fire Department professionals are the critical link not only for the caller but also for the Firefighters and Paramedics in the field. Their role is critical to the outcome of the incident and many times contributes to the survivability of our patients. The CCC dispatches for 15 Fire and EMS agencies that serve a population of over 500,000 in Spokane County. The Communication Center is located at the SFD Training Campus and jointly occupys are in the Combined Communications Building with Spokane County 911, Spokane Sheriff and Spokane Police Department Dispatching Agencies. Working 24 hour shifts with their Station counterparts, these trained professionals routinely handle over 53,000 calls received a year. SFD Dispatchers are not normally the first personnel that are thought of in Fire and Medical Emergencies, but they are a vital component in every Fire Department response. Our SFD Dispatchers are the unseen first responders whose work is invaluable and critical to the successful handling of any emergency situation. Additionally, these men and women help countless people who may not have an emergency situation but are just trying to get an answer to a troubling circumstances. This week provides an opportunity for our community to show their appreciation for the difficult job that our Fire Dispatchers perform daily and the quality service they provide to everyone. The Fire Department Dispatchers are an important and vital part of our community, and maintain that role with professionalism, integrity, and competence. You can help us help you when calling in an emergency by following these simple tips: Be prepared to answer the question, "What is the location of your emergency?" -Stay on the line until you are directed to hang up. -If possible, when at home use your home phone, not your wireless phone. 9-1-1 calls on wired lines provide caller name, phone number and address as well as other information that is useful for processing the 9-1-1 call. -The use of cell phones accounts for the majority of 9-1-1 calls. When using your wireless phone, know where you are. 9-1-1 calls on wireless phones provide only the phone number. In many cases, depending on type of phone, the carrier, and the signal strength, the location of the caller may plot on a map, but we may not be able to obtain an accurate address.
Cause:
N/A
Damage:
N/A
End Of Release For more information on this release please call (509) 625-7002
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