In 2016, Washington County dispatchers received 11,833 calls. This week is National Telecommunicators Week, a time to honor those who answer emergency calls and help get assistance to emergency situations. Cara Sorrells, Washington County E911 Supervisor, says technology improvements in recent years have changed how their work is done. She explains when she began everything was done on triplicate paper, but now staff has to talk and type because everything is computerized. Sorrells says they’re preparing for further changes, “We’re getting ready to take text messages, and after that will be video, so it just continues to change. ”

She adds during training staff talks about how to emotionally handle calls, “In talking about how it effects an operator, you know, we hear it now, but what happens when someone sends us a video of a horrific accident. … That is going to take it to a new realm, I think.”

Washington County currently has 10 telecommunicators on staff, with a total of 129 years of experience answering emergency calls.