Good News: 911 Dispatcher Marra Wargo Saved a Choking Dog
911 dispatcher Marra Wargo talks about getting a call about a choking dog and how she was able to talk the owner through performing the Heimlich maneuver on the dog. [VIDEO]
City of Odessa receives state award (TX)
The City of Odessa’s Public Safety Communications Department on Monday received the Telecommunicator Team of the Year Award from the Texas Association of Public Safety Communications Officials.
In July 2020, APCO presented the same award to the city for their work during the Aug. 31, 2019, active shooter incident, according to a city press release…
“Call If You Can, Text If You Can’t” With New 9-1-1 Service in Mono County (CA)
The Mono County Sheriff’s Office is now offering Text to 9-1-1 services for our residents and visitors to Mono County to report emergencies. Dialing 9-1-1 in an emergency is still the preferred way to request help, and the public is reminded to “Call if you can, text if you can’t.” For most people, sending a text to 9-1-1 should not replace making a call.
Appropriate scenarios for texting 9-1-1 include:
• Individuals who are deaf, hard of hearing or who have a speech disability… READ MORE
Chicago’s Office of Emergency Management and Communications Introduces a New Smart911 Feature Allowing Residents to Opt-in to Sharing Camera Footage with the Chicago Police Department (IL)
The City of Chicago’s Office of Emergency Management & Communications (OEMC) is introducing a new feature available as part of the Smart911 platform to assist the Chicago Police Department in better serving Chicago communities. Residents with a Smart911 safety profile who have a home surveillance camera that captures the public way can partner with the Chicago Police Department in the event that a crime occurs in their neighborhood. By simply opting in on an existing Smart911 profile or by creating a new profile, residents can volunteer to share home
surveillance camera footage by allowing the Chicago Police Department to contact them in the event of a crime…
Director hopes to fix 911 wait-time problems at state’s largest dispatch center (UT)
SALT LAKE CITY (KUTV) — Too many 911 callers are still waiting too long to speak to someone at the state’s largest dispatch center, auditors told a legislative audit committee Monday.
The Salt Lake Valley Emergency Communications Center (VECC), which handles 25% of 911 calls in Utah, was dinged by auditors last year for failing to meet national standards for answering 911 calls, but auditors found things have not improved much after 6 months.
Forty-seven percent of 911 callers to VECC are placed on hold, around 25% of those calls are on hold for more than 20 seconds. Approximately 7% of 911 callers are on hold for more than a minute, according to the audit update... READ MORE
Honoring Chisago County dispatchers (MN)
Last month, the Chisago County Sheriff’s Office celebrated this year’s National Telecommunicators Week on April 11-17, by honoring its dedicated 911 Emergency Dispatchers.
During an emergency, they are the first point of contact for the citizens of Chisago County, tourists and those traveling through the area.
These 13, highly trained, caring Emergency 911 Dispatchers staff the Emergency Communications Center 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and 365 days a year. They work nights, weekends and holidays to ensure the safety of the citizens of Chisago County, as well as the first responders they send to every call…
