PEPPERELL — Chief David Scott would like to recognize the town’s public safety dispatchers during National Public Safety Telecommunicators Week.
During the week of April 12-18, public safety agencies take time to reflect on the critical role telecommunications professionals play in supporting the work of first responders. This week honors the thousands of men and women across the country who respond to emergency calls, dispatch first responders and equipment and render life-saving assistance to residents.
Pepperell’s communications department, led by Communications Director David Stairs, consists of four full-time and additional part-time civilian dispatchers, who are specially trained to handle thousands of calls for service every year. While their work is done outside of the view of the public, they are an essential resource for first responders and the public alike and serve as the first point of contact for members of the public seeking help in an emergency.
“Though dispatchers aren’t out on the streets, they are truly the front line of any and all emergencies,” Chief Scott said. “They take calls and provide us with the information we need to get us to an emergency and help us understand what we’ll find when we get there. Our officers would not be able to do their jobs nearly as effectively or safely without our communications personnel, and we thank them for all that they do.”
About APCO International
APCO International is the world’s oldest and largest organization of public safety communications professionals and supports the largest U.S. membership base of any public safety association, and it sponsors National Public Safety Telecommunicators Week each year.
It serves the needs of public safety communications practitioners worldwide – and the welfare of the general public as a whole – by providing complete expertise, professional development, technical assistance, advocacy and outreach.
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