About This Role
This specialized role involves receiving and processing emergency and non-emergency calls for the City's Police, Fire, and EMS departments. The Telecommunicator prioritizes calls, dispatches appropriate public safety officials, and maintains open lines of communication during emergency situations. The work emphasizes data entry into emergency CAD dispatch consoles, providing information and referrals to the public, and communicating with police officials during emergencies.
Responsibilities
- Receive incoming calls from the public
- Evaluate requests for service
- Prioritize calls according to protocol and dispatch public safety units
- Receive after-hours calls for utilities, street maintenance, and traffic signal malfunctions
- Dispatch public safety officials to emergencies
- Communicate with units during situations
- Send additional units to situations based on requests or updated information
- Monitor self-initiated activities of police officers and provide them with information on retained suspects
- Maintain records of authorizations, warrants, and other information required for DCI/NCIC entries
- Log all activities
- Use the NC AWARE Program to check for outstanding warrants
- Communicate results to officers in the field
- Close telecommunications calls for service and identify police units back in service
- Update criminal history logs
- Perform other duties as assigned
Requirements
- High school diploma or general education degree (GED)
- At least 6 months' experience in a dispatch function or extensive public contact role
- NC Division of Criminal Information certificate (must obtain within 1 year of hire date)
- North Carolina Statewide Warrant Repository (must obtain within 1 year of hire date)
- Criminal Justice Law Enforcement Automated Data Services (must obtain within 1 year of hire date)
- Knowledge of the operation and use of computer-aided dispatching equipment
- Knowledge of FCC communications signals in lieu of voice traffic
- Knowledge of various support manuals and resources such as call books, HAZMAT manual, tactical dispatch manual, and other standard operating procedural manuals
- Some knowledge of current telecommunications practices and procedures as well as practices and procedures used in the police and fire departments
- Knowledge of city geography and street locations
- Ability to manage multiple situations at once under stressful conditions
- Ability to operate a computer terminal, telephones, radios, computer-aided dispatch (CAD) consoles
- Ability to sit for long periods of time in low light with multiple computer screens
