That first whiff of fresh-cut pine; the overabundance of pumpkin-spiced everything; a gentle glow of candle flame and the infectious giddiness of a child’s anticipation – the holiday season can certainly be a joyous time! However, for those in public safety and shift work, late-October to mid-January is not all greeting cards and the Hallmark Channel specials. This time of year often means missing family, dealing with estranged loved ones and a dramatic rise in seasonal depression and anxiety.
Protecting your mental health is challenging when the holidays can conspire against it. Feeling left out and tense is more common than not for those in police, fire, corrections and emergency medicine. What can be done to give a spirit boost in the season of cheer?
Lara Vanderbilt’s work schedule is anything but a 9 to 5.
Some weeks during her training, as a dispatcher with the Boulder County Communications Center, she works 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Other weeks, those times are flipped to an overnight shift.
But an unordinary, unpredictable schedule and the nature of the job is what prompted her to apply, Vanderbilt said…
NEW PORT RICHEY, Fla. (WFLA) – A Pasco County family got to meet and thank their hero behind the headset.
“We just feel we were blessed that he was the one that answered that call,” Christy Hupp said. “It was just meant to be.”
The Hupp family from Zephyrhills credits 911 call taker Rob Lippmann with helping save 53-year-old Jeff Hupp during a medical emergency in early November…
A man landed in jail in November for allegedly calling 9-1-1 at least 25 times.
According to court documents:
In April, police responded to a reported family disturbance. A dispatcher told the officers a man and woman could be heard yelling over the phone.
The officers arrived at the address and announced their presence. A man said “hang on” and answered the door holding his jeans up around his waist. He told police there was no disturbance and he was just spending time with his wife. Officers saw an unclothed woman on the couch. She told the officers she was fine…
By Thomas Randall, Senior Public Safety Advisor for New Mexico, First Responder Network Authority
Every day first responders step out into the frontlines to protect and serve their communities. In the last decade, firefighters, law enforcement officers, and EMS professionals nationwide rarely responded to incidents without bringing their mobile devices.
The tech revolution has made it possible for first responders to do things previously not imagined. Nowadays, first responders load their mobile phones with apps to wield drones during search and rescue missions, monitor tornadoes, pull up floor plans in burning buildings, and much more.
With authorization from City Council, the Statesboro Fire Department and Statesboro Police Department are moving forward with a plan to merge the dispatching of fire calls – after the initial callout by 911 – into the existing SPD dispatching center at police headquarters.
In the process, the SPD dispatching center will be expanded with additional equipment and software and will hire eight additional dispatchers, doubling the number currently employed by the Police Department. Right now, all of the Statesboro Fire Department’s dispatching, including follow-up calls for continuing emergencies such as structure fires and rescues of entrapped drivers, is handled by the Bulloch County 911 Center, which also serves Candler and Evans counties under contract…
Learn about current efforts to continue to protect the 4.9 GHz Band for public safety as well as recent filings, key decisions impacting these efforts, and how you can support PSSA’s initiative to protect the 4.9 GHz band for public safety.
