Dispatcher-Added Safety?: Keeping in Touch, Watching the Clock

Many fire dispatchers report that some of their job frustration (and a little anxiety) comes from the time interval between dispatch and initial report. A caller or a pulled fire alarm box has alerted dispatchers to a need for service. Dispatchers have made a judgement, informed by information presented, available resources, and departmental policy about how many and what kind of units to send to an incident. But until they get the initial report, they don’t know what is going on out there, if what they sent is what is needed and, most importantly, if responders got to the scene safely.

Having a comprehensive policy, that is routinely followed, about both initial reports and times for which subsequent reports are due to be transmitted to dispatch goes a long way to enhancing responder safety.

I have had the experience of an on-scene chief call on the radio and ask to be told when 10 minutes from the time of this radio contact had elapsed. I gave him a 10-4, noted the time and raised him on the radio 10 minutes later. He thanked me and went back to managing the fire. Hours later, when he was back in quarters and I was off the radio position, I called him and asked what had prompted his unusual request. He told me that there was a lot going on at the fire, that he knew we had other active fires working, and that he was pretty sure he had enough resources at his scene to hold it. But he was so busy that he needed somebody to keep time for him so he could judge whether condition changes in 10 minutes validated his judgment or if he needed to call for more help. As it turned out his judgement was correct, they controlled and extinguished the fire with the resources they had. What impressed me, though, was the humility and savvy situational awareness of this experienced chief saying, in essence, “I know you are busy. I think I’m alright here, but I’m giving myself 10 minutes to be certain.”

I have often told the story of sending a single engine out to a car fire (that “routine” non-structural fire call again!) and losing track of that alarm in the subsequent waves of pulled boxes, structure fires, heart attacks, etc. Long after an initial report would have normally been due, a faint and pained radio message was heard. The company had been struck by a drunk driver while operating at that “routine” car fire. That radio message abruptly brought that alarm back to the top of our attention.

You don’t have to be working in a very busy PSAP to find yourself in a similar situation. Many jurisdictions I have visited (and lived in) have a single dispatcher on duty who answers 911 calls, administrative calls, radio calls and tends to citizens walking in looking for where they can get a dog license, a gun permit, a job application, a burn permit, directions to whatever because their GPS sure can’t find it, do you know a guy named…?

Municipal budget realities may dictate the wearing of many hats for dispatchers. It is important to keep in mind how easy it is to get distracted in that kind of work environment.

Dispatchers need to keep track of units out in the field and go ahead and bother them when you haven’t heard from them. In some computer aided dispatch systems, a screen in front of the radio dispatcher will display a time-generated prompt for initial report or progress updates. Not all systems have this feature yet and, as I continually remind dispatchers, systems can and do and will go down. So, remember that the dispatcher is often truly a lifeline for field forces. Know where your troops are and when you last heard from them. This meets the standard missions of your department for providing emergency service coverage and response and keeping responders safe.