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 9-15,  as National Public Safety Telecommunicators Week.

 

The committee is privileged to honor the men and women who serve in this role to protect the citizens of our Great Lakes State. “This week we are stopping to say thank you,” said 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, telecommunicators provide medical pre-arrival instructions; activate weather alerts, towing services, hospitals, road commission, utility, and public works department notifications; handle call-outs for specialized response teams such as search and rescue, activating medical examiners, and hazmat response teams. //

 

Telecommunicators receive calls through many various 911 dialing systems including wireless, traditional telephones, Voice Over the Internet Protocol (VoIP), and in some counties, via texts.

Jeff Troyer, chair of the committee, also commends 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 almost seven million times each year. I commend these individuals for their exemplary service.” The committee is a 21 member organization that works together to promote the successful development, implementation, and operation of 911 systems across the state.

 

Quick Facts about 911 in Michigan:

• There are 143 Public Safety Answering Points (PSAPs) in Michigan.

• According to the 2016 annual report, of the counties and service districts that reported, the telecommunicators in Michigan answered: 6,994,127 calls to 911, 2,814 Texts-to-911, and 7,546,952 calls from non-911 lines.

• There are approximately 2,089 telecommunicators in Michigan.

• Michigan is one of thirteen states to have training standards for telecommunicators.

• 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 in approved courses and accumulating at least 24 continuing education hours every

24 months.

• Thirty-two counties presently accept Text-to-911 calls which represents 50.24 percent of the population; many other counties are working toward accepting Text-to-911.

For a map of current text-to-911 deployments, visit the SNC website at www.michigan.gov/snc under “Current Issues.”