Behind The Scenes of Rural Area 911 Dispatchers

PITTSBORO, Miss. (WCBI) – It’s a job that requires multi-tasking, effectively gathering information, assessing the situation, then dispatching the appropriate first responders.

Dispatchers like the ones in Calhoun County don’t just take calls, they make them, contacting multiple agencies… while still being on the phone with the caller, all to make sure a situation is taken care of at a moment’s notice.

911, what’s your emergency?

That’s what you always hear when you dial 911, and for dispatchers like Barbara Ward being on the receiving end of that call can be demanding.

“It can be the most stressful job but by far the most rewarding job I’ve ever had,” said the 14-year veteran.

Ward’s station at the Calhoun County Sheriff’s Department could make the normal office worker go a little crazy with the amount of screens she has to deal with.

She never knows what her day is going to be like.

“You can come in and sit there for eight hours and get one call,” said Calhoun County 911 Director, Wayne Stone.

Or, as Ward tells us, a dispatcher could be pulling 48-hour shifts dealing with multiple callers.

When only one person is on duty, a dispatcher’s skill set goes beyond just taking calls.

“We are EMD certified, which we give pre-arrival medical instructions on medical calls we dispatch for ambulance, fire, police,” said Ward

The kind of training can give a nervous caller be a little more ease while help is on the way.

Some situations may require another county agency to step in, and coordination with that county’s 911 service is key.

“It’s very important,” said Ward. “I mean, everything has to go smoothly.”

“Each county is going to be different, but when they go through their training they coordinate with each other and they get to talk to other dispatchers and find out what goes on in their counties and their agencies,” said Stone.

Once everyone is where they need to be, dispatchers like Ward can take a breath.

“It’s a relief. It feels good to know that you’ve done everything because then you can sit back and say ‘Whew! You know, did it, got it done,'” said Stone.

Dispatchers have to go through hours of training and re-certification to make sure they’re on top of their game.

For people so dedicated, it’s no wonder they have an entire week dedicated to their service, National Telecommunicators Week.