Local Radar

E911 Dispatchers, the heart of emergency services 
web posted December 16, 2005

BELOW: Lt. Karen Jaggers checks information on the NCIC computer
EDGEFIELD – With the growing population in Edgefield County it continues to bring what all growing populations bring, more crime, more wrecks, and more fires. EdgefieldDaily.com covers as much of the breaking events as possible on a daily basis. In doing so our readers often see which deputy, officer or fire department responds to the call. What is not seen, or recognized, is those who are behind the scenes coordinating the efforts of all of them; the dispatchers.

Sheriff Adell Dobey said he is proud of the work the dispatchers do noting sometimes it can become very stressful, such in the recent tragic death of eight year old Faith McBride. It is the dispatcher who takes the 9-1-1 calls and keeps those on the other end of the call calm, even when hope seems faint. In such tragic events, like those involving children, “We have, through the state, counseling if it is needed,” Sheriff Dobey said.
                                  BELOW: Lt. Polly Hall takes a call in the dispatch center
Lt. Chris Wash of the Sheriff’s Office said the dispatchers deal with a lot of the same things the deputies do out in the community, “it can go from 90 to nothing with a single call,” he said. A majority of calls the dispatchers deal with are the run of the mill calls; burglar alarms going off (the vast majority being false calls), a damaged mailbox, or an animal call like dogs running loose. In an instant that can all change.

Such was the case on Sunday November 13, 2005 when a collision on Highway 25 and Bettis Academy Road claimed the lives of two men. Firemen, EMS, and Sheriff’s Deputies were all directed and supported by the dispatchers. The dispatchers have to manage calls for all agencies, not just police.

Lt. Karen Jaggers, who oversees the dispatchers, said dispatchers work twelve hour shifts that run from 7 am to 7 pm with two dispatchers on duty at a time. “The dispatchers and jailers are cross-trained,” she said which gives the Sheriff’s Office a larger pool of available personnel in the event someone is sick or a disaster took place that would require more personnel on duty at the time. In addition all are certified in CPR each year as well as First Aid.

“When you have someone on the phone who is saying they can’t do CPR we have to keep them calm and tell them we will tell them what to do,” Lt. Jaggers said, “We remind them they can do it, we are there to help them.” Being certified in CPR makes that job easier for dispatchers. Calls that involve children are the hardest calls to deal with and with Edgefield County being a small county eventually, ”it involves someone you know,” Lt. Jaggers said, “those are really hard on you.” Generally when the caller is needed to perform lifesaving aid, “they do just fine.”

Lt. Jaggers advises that every parent should take a CPR class, even if they do not keep the certification up. “It would make things a lot easier if they have done CPR before,” she said. "The odds are someone who took CPR classes will more than likely perform it on someone they know."

EdgefieldDaily.com would like to thank those who work behind the scenes to support and direct all emergency agencies. The eight full time dispatchers are; Cpl. Angela Thomas, Cpl. Jodi Cato, Latonya Simmons, Angela Cloyd, Ada Duncan, Kisha Coyler, Robin Faulkner, and Lisa Howard. Lt. Karen Jaggers and Lt. Polly Hall also fill in daily.

Six of the jailers also serve as dispatchers, they are; Bertha Shealy, Heidi Presley, Shedall Stevens, Allison Shuster, Daryl Harris, and Barbara Carter.

Training required for dispatchers: Certification as Detention Officer and certification in E911 offered by the Criminal Justice Academy in Columbia. Certification of NCIC (National Criminal Information Center) through SLED and the FBI.

Dispatches for EMS, Fire, Sheriff’s Office, and Police departments of Edgefield, Johnston and Trenton. Coordinates with SC Highway Patrol, SCDOT, SLED, FBI, and Edgefield County EMA.
 

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