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Houston County 9/11 Dispatchers Work to Keep the Peace and Keep Their Cool

By Greg Ritchie

Messenger Reporter

HOUSTON COUNTY – It’s the phone call you hope you never have to make. But it’s the one phone call where hearing a busy signal isn’t an option. Most people who call 911 are calling on the worst day of their lives and the men and women who answer must get right information to right people fast enough to make a difference in those lives. 

After 911 operations were consolidated throughout the county, the calls now come in to the central dispatch office at the Sheriff’s Office in Crockett. The room is kitted out with a big dispatch area with several monitors and screens where the dispatchers monitor the different law enforcement agencies throughout the county. 

As The Messenger reported during a recent ride-along with Crockett Police Department, the dispatchers take the information and post it to a centralized system which officers on patrol can respond to, almost like taxi drivers. 

Other officers see who has taken the call and if more information comes in, the dispatchers can update the information in real time. As Brooke Stuebing and Elizabeth Bridges were working the day shift, Dispatch Administrator Casey Proctor said the job can take an unseen toll on her team. 

“This job can lead you down a very dark path if you don’t have adequate help, which we do. I tell my guys if there’s a rough call bothering them or something in their personal life, we’re always here to help,” Proctor said. “Because there are certain calls we take that can affect you – maybe something with a child or maybe your family members involved. I tell them ‘Don’t be afraid to talk, don’t keep it in.’

The center runs every day, all day, weekends, nights, holidays. No emergency call can go unanswered. Proctor’s job is first and foremost to make sure the center is always staffed, make sure her people are dealing with the job – and the callers – in the appropriate way and making sure all the training is completed correctly. 

Proctor, a native of Louisiana has worked as a 911 dispatcher since 2018, eventually running the center. Part of the training is technical, a big part is dealing with people and dealing with themselves. 

“We’re not always going to have good days, sometimes it’s super hectic,” Proctor explained. “But we always remember to keep our customer service voice on, because we have to provide services  so they know they can count on us to get them help. We need to get the officer out there, let them determine what they have to do.”

This week marks National Telecommunicators Week, a time to remember those who sit in a room during Christmas and late at night just in case we need help. It can be daunting, with twelve hour shifts rotating staff from days to nights to keep them fresh. 

Imagine a job where, even on a bad day when you didn’t sleep enough or are just “not feeling it” to have to respond professionally and patiently, dealing with people going through any number of different stressful situations. Your job is to calm them, get the information you need to send help and assure them help is on the way. The callers can be panicked, rude, confused or worse – and you must sort it out so officers or medical personnel know what to expect. Not a job for just anyone. 

“It’s tough at times. It takes somebody that can be calm under pressure,” Proctor said. “There will be stressful situations, there will be calls you wouldn’t expect that can take a toll on you, and that’s okay. It comes with a lot, but our main thought process should be, ‘I’m here to provide help. And I want to make sure my deputies and my officers get home to their families at the end of their shift.’”

Please take a minute and thank the businesses who have supported our local dispatchers in a special page in today’s newspaper. 

Greg Ritchie can be reached at [email protected]

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