Honouring Emergency Communications Operators

Strathcona County is celebrating our Emergency Communications Operators during National Public Safety Telecommunicators Week from April 14 to 20, 2024.  

Every day, Emergency Communications Operators serve as the voice of calm in a crisis, answering 9-1-1 calls, coordinating emergency response, providing critical instructions and offering reassurance to callers. These unsung heroes work under intense pressure to make sure help arrives when our community needs it. 

“Our Emergency Communications Operators play a vital role in keeping our residents safe,” says Mayor Rod Frank. “We are grateful for their dedication to our community and the service they provide every single day.” 

Strathcona County is home to two emergency communications centres; 9-1-1 calls are first answered by Emergency Services staff, and police and enforcement calls are dispatched by RCMP and Enforcement Services staff.  

“I am incredibly proud of our team,” says Deputy Chief Dawn Nash. “Strathcona County was the first Public Answering Safety Point in Canada to transition to the Next Generation 9-1-1 system. It was a complete revamp of our centre’s technology and our operators made this transition while continuing to take 9-1-1 calls and helping those in need.”  

“The RCMP emergency telecommunications centre expects to transition to the new Next Generation 9-1-1 system later this year,” says Derek Stankey, Manager of RCMP Operations Support. “Strathcona County will be the first community in Canada to have all 9-1-1 services on the new system which will better enable our staff to continue providing superior services to our community.”  

Please take a moment to thank the hearts behind the headsets. Operators work 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year to answer emergency calls, help our residents and support responding staff.  

Learn more about duties and careers as an Emergency Communications Operators and what questions they ask 9-1-1 callers at strathcona.ca/911week. 

Contact: 

Strathcona County Communications, 780-410-6595 
www.strathcona.ca