April 11-17 is National Public Safety Telecommunicators Week

If you own a police scanner you hear the voices of dispatchers who answer 9-1-1 emergency calls and dispatch police and fire professional to help save lives. While police officers get a lot of praise the telecommunicators are sometimes overlooked. The Yakima City Council is determined to make sure those people are recognized next week. April 11-17 is  National Public Safety Telecommunicators Week. The week honors the men and women who are the critical first step in the public safety system. A press release from the city of Yakima says "they are the ones who answer 9-1-1 emergency calls, dispatch emergency professionals and equipment, and render life-saving assistance to the first responders and the community.

SunComm is the 9-1-1 and dispatch center serving the City and County of Yakima. SunComm staff handled more than 27,000 9-1-1 calls in the first three months of 2021 alone.

During Tuesday's Yakima City Council the council issued a proclamation recognizing National Telecommunicators Week. The proclamation, signed by Mayor Patricia Byers, reads in part:

“WHEREAS, emergency call-takers and dispatchers of SunComm have contributed substantially to the apprehension of criminals, suppression of fires, and treatment of patients; and WHEREAS, each emergency call-taker and dispatcher has exhibited compassion, understanding, professionalism, and displayed untiring efforts during their assigned shifts in the past year; NOW THEREFORE, I, Patricia Byers, Mayor of the City of Yakima and on behalf of the Yakima City Council, do hereby proclaim the week of April 11-17, 2021 as “NATIONAL TELE COMMUNICATORS WEEK” in the City of Yakima, in honor of the men and women whose diligence and professionalism keep our City and citizens safe."