by Velvet Brooks

Created on: August 13, 2008

I have spent the last 14 years of my life as a 911 dispatcher. I could not think of working any other job even if I tried. Working as a dispatcher is a very fulfilling and satisfying job. I worked for the 2nd largest county in the state of Kentucky. It takes a lot to get into the job by way of psychological exams, Lie detector test, written test and then four weeks of the Law Enforcement Academy in Richmond Kentucky. There you get trained in radio procedures and NCIC computer (National Crime Information Computer) also the LINK (Legal Information Network of Kentucky). The NCIC is the FBI database where you enter wanted persons, missing persons, stolen items etc. The LINK is the Kentucky system where emergency protective orders, drivers license and vehicle registrations are entered among other things.

The Emergency Operations Center in Christian County is where I was employed. There are 3 dispatchers to each shift which was far from enough. One radio was for city police, one was for the Sheriff's department, juvenile police and the last radio is for the volunteer fire departments (there are 17 of those) and four paid departments and three ambulance departments also Rescue service and life flight. There are also several C.B. type radios that deal with the local electric company, water department, school bus garage and the road department.

On an average day each shift will receive 200 plus 911 calls not counting admin calls. It is a job where multi-tasking is a MUST. There has been many time I have had two telephones attached to my head and answering officers while typing information into our CAD system. It takes a certain person to do this job. You have to be able to talk a parent thru CPR or an elderly person whose husband or wife of fifty years has passed waiting for an ambulance. Taking bogus calls from kids playing on phones to small kid's home alone not knowing where mom is. I have even received a call wanting a recipe for chocolate chip cookies.

Weather is also something that makes it hectic. Where we are has a lot of tornados and ice storms. One summer during a tornado our tower got hit by lightening. We did not have any 911 lines but one and we had to continually answer it because it wouldn't ring. We had to contact BellSouth and have all admin lines transferred to emergency cell phones. During the ice storms and there was no power in 90 percent of the homes we had a lot of elderly on oxygen that ran off electric. It also gets really hard when you take a 911 call for a family member which I have done several times. All in all it is a thankless job with large amounts of stress but worth it knowing you have helped those who need you.

Learn more about this author, Velvet Brooks.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.