National Public Safety Telecommunications Week is April 13-17, and Greater Sudbury Police Service is recognizing its communicators, who are the first response to every call.
Communicators are the first contact for 911 calls for citizens in emergency situations, and are the crucial link when police, fire or medical assistance is required.
When people dial 911, callers are met with communicators who stay calm, listen, answer questions and send the right resources in the right time.
This is a 24/7 job that requires teamwork, specialized skills, multi-tasking and professionalism, said a news release.
“Communicators must be able to take control of situations that may be chaotic, heart-wrenching, stressful, confusing and frenzied,” said communications manager Marianne Laberge.
The coverage area for the Greater Sudbury Police Service encompasses a wide territory expanding south to the Estaire border, to the east just past Wahnapitae, north significantly past Capreol, and west to the border of Nairn Centre.
Given such a large geography, key to a communicator’s decision-making is to know where units are at all times in order to get the best response time.
Communications Centre staff in the city receive approximately 55,600 emergency calls a year, dispatching 59,000 police calls and 4,500 fire calls.
