Prince William answered 151,000 911 calls in 2018. How tech is making the job easier.

WOODBRIDGE — As Prince William County’s population grows, so does the number of 911 calls handled by emergency dispatchers.

As the county quickly approaches nearly a half-million people, Director of Public Safety Communications Eddie Reyes said that not only is call the number of calls on the rise but adds the job is evolving with new smartphone technology.

“The [call] volume has increased with the proliferation of smartphones. We now get multiple calls on one incident. For example, at a crash, if it’s at a busy intersection, we will immediately get five to 10 calls,” said Reyes. “We almost have to talk to each person at some level of detail because maybe one person saw the color of the vehicle, another the license plate… We have to capture every caller even if we get multiple calls.”

Also changing is how call-takers home in on a caller’s location, by using a technology called RapidSOS, which is embedded into a computer-aided dispatch, or CAD, system, a commonly used program for emergency services dispatch.

“Another thing that’s changed related to smartphone tech, with everyone having a smartphone not everyone knows their location. Maybe they’re not able to tell due to a medical emergency. We’ve had to implement technology that gets us close enough to the caller to dispatch services.”

The system takes the IP address from the phone and plots it on a map, revealing a blue dot on a screen. RapidSOS automatically extracts that location from your phone and sends it to the 911 call center.

Each year during the second week of April, the U.S. celebrates National Public Safety Telecommunicators Week. it’s a time to thank those who dedicate their lives to serving the public, talking to them on what is most likely one of the worst days of their lives.

The RapidSOS technology recently helped first responders save a life.

“On April 4 [2019] we had a life save. The person calling could not breathe or speak, all they were able to do is call 911. This technology put the blue dot over the door, fire and rescue forced the door open and the team rendered aid. If they had arrived one minute later this person would have been a fatality,” Reyes said.

In 2018, Prince William County dispatched 151,000 calls for service. Of these calls, 133,000 came from smartphones versus 26,000 that came from landlines. They also had 163 texts to 911.

“We had a successful save in which a child was being sexually assaulted by a family member. She could not talk to report so she was texting back and forth with 911 and we were able to arrest that family member,” Reyes said.

First of the first responders

“Our call takers have been coined the first of the first responders,” Reyes said.

“Often times we are providing to people who call 911 medical direction, how to shelter in place during a break-in, how to help someone breathe. We keep people safe until the first responders arrive,” he continued.

The high stakes of the job are stressful and take a toll on the mental health of the telecommunicators.

“We handle three to five calls per day in which people die, sometimes while on the phone with the caller. Of course, they’re completely disheveled when the call terminates. For that reason we have a full-time counselor here at our center who provides grief counseling when they have one of those calls,” Reyes said.

A 911 telecommunicator’s perspective

Kelly Magee, a Telecommunicator 3 for Prince William County has been in her position for four years.

One of the best parts of her job is “being a part of a large family of people who can just come together and synchronize during the most stressful conditions. When the phones start ringing off the hook, everyone pitches in.”

The position also comes with challenges.

“One challenge is to locate citizens who don’t know where they’re located. I ask questions about their surroundings if they remember street names on the way to where they are, making sure I can find them to dispatch the units they need in the right amount of time,” Magee said.

For Magee, not knowing the outcome of every call they dispatch is also difficult.

For those wanting to pursue a career as a telecommunicator —

“Never give up, never lose focus. If you want to be a part of the first responder family just remember your end goal which is to get as many people home safe and sound by the end of the shift.”

Magee says her day is fueled by lots of coffee and good conversation with coworkers.

“My coworkers are such an eclectic and extraordinary group of people. We rely on each other and celebrate when the day is done,” she said.

“We don’t just sit behind a desk and wait for a call to come in. We’re always learning new technologies and new techniques to better assist callers,” Magee said.

Though her job is often thankless, Magee finds it rewarding.

“You never really get recognized. It’s often a thankless job but the reward is knowing that you’ve brought the resources to a stranger and gotten them help. You’re the voice in the darkness, the voice to bring calm to the chaos,” she said.