The State 911 Committee gives tribute to Michigan telecommunicators and their vital contributions to public safety. In 1991, the United States Congress designated the second week in April, this year April 8-14, as National Public Safety Telecommunicators Week. In Michigan, the State 911 Committee is privileged to honor the men and women who serve in this role to protect the citizens of the Great Lakes State.
“This is the week we take time to highlight the important role that telecommunicators have in facilitating emergency services and say thank you,” declared Harriet Miller-Brown, state 911 administrator. “It is an honor to celebrate these exemplary individuals who demonstrate the highest levels of professional conduct and extraordinary performance. Their dedication and hard work touches the lives of countless people daily.”
In Michigan, 911 centers serve as the primary point for dispatching police, fire, and EMS responses. In addition to answering and dispatching emergency calls, telecommunicators also provide medical pre-arrival instructions, activate weather alerts, additional incident scene response such as Child Protective Service, hospitals, road commission, utility, and public works department notifications; and handle the call-outs for specialized response teams such as search and rescue, activating medical examiners, and hazmat response teams. Telecommunicators receive calls through many different 911 dialing systems including wireless, traditional telephones, Voice Over the Internet Protocol (VoIP), and in some counties, via texts.
Jeff Troyer, chair of the State 911 Committee, also recognizes the accomplishments of 911 telecommunicators across the state and said, “911 is the gateway to emergency services for residents and visitors during their time of need. Our well-trained 911 professionals in the State of Michigan answer this need more than six million times each year. I commend these individuals for their exemplary service.”
The State 911 Committee was established in accordance with Public Act 79 of 1999. It is a 21 member organization that works together to promote the successful development, implementation, and operation of 911 systems across the State of Michigan.
Facts about 911 in Michigan
• 911 is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. On February 16, 1968, Alabama Speaker of the House, Rankin Fite, made the first 911 call from the Haleyville City Hall.
• Today there are 142 Public Safety Answering Points (PSAPs) in Michigan.
• According to the 2017 annual report, of the counties and service districts that reported, the telecommunicators in Michigan answered: 6,382,487 calls to 911, 4,733 Texts-to-911, and 7,109,529 calls from non-911 lines.
• There are approximately 2,000 telecommunicators in Michigan.
• In becoming a telecommunicator, individuals first participate in 80 hours of basic and advanced dispatch training within their first 24 months of employment.
• Michigan designated telecommunicators maintain continuing education requirements by participating in approved courses and accumulating at least 24 continuing education hours every 24 months.
• Forty (40) counties and one (1) Wayne County Service District presently accept Text-to-911 calls which represents 54.92% of the population; many other counties are working toward accepting Text-to-911. For a map of current text-to-911 deployments, please visit the SNC website at www.michigan.gov/snc under “Emerging Technology.”
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