“911, What’s the location of your emergency?”

National Public Safety Telecommunicators Week is celebrated the second week in April and honors dispatchers like Britnee Callaway. Photo by Michael Schumacher.

Last year there were over 365 medical, fire, and hazardous material calls that came into the Emergency Services Dispatch Center (ESDC) at Pantex. The dispatchers who take those calls are the lifeline to emergency services, working to get help to people when they need it.

“We are the first point of contact when you have an emergency or need assistance,” Dispatcher Britnee Callaway said. “We understand that time is precious and can make a difference in the outcome of a call. If we receive a call for service, we ask a lot of questions to ensure we get the right resources to your location quickly. As one dispatcher is taking a call, another is dispatching the Fire Department to get them started to the location.”

National Public Safety Telecommunicators Week is April 13-19 and honors the dedication of dispatchers in their critical safety role. Emergency Services dispatchers are important to Pantex, the nearby communities, and the first responders going to the incident.

“My favorite part of being a dispatcher is not always knowing what the day is going to bring outside of the day-to-day tasks,” Callaway said. “At any point, someone could be having an emergency, and we get to help. Not only do we serve the Pantex community, we also assist the surrounding counties. So, each day has the potential to be more exciting than the last in terms of service.”

Callaway joined Pantex Emergency Services in 2024. At the time, there was a total of 10 dispatchers running a 24/7/365 operation. The number of dispatchers has recently increased helping to alleviate fatigue and strengthen resources during multi-incident response.

“With this growth, we have been able to better serve the community that carries out the Pantex mission,” she said. “Along with new dispatchers comes new ideas, processes, and technology from previous departments. It’s exciting to see how the technology has evolved and to have the opportunity to incorporate some of this into our role here.”

Dispatchers regularly assist with testing fire systems, monitoring buildings for new and existing alarms, assisting with hazmat calls, keeping records, and monitoring events happening around the community. The dispatchers working in the ESDC bring a wealth of experience from previous internal positions at Pantex and from outside agencies. They take pride in serving Pantex in this critical role.

“We are a mix of personnel that have served different departments,” Callaway said. “The members with the longest experience have been previous security police officers; the newest members came from surrounding county and city services. We even have a previous operations control specialist for Apollo Med Flight. With these different backgrounds, we have even more experiences available for us to draw from.”

Dispatchers are the front line of communication between people who need help and the emergency service providers administering aid. Without their calm demeanor, quick thinking, and skillful decision making, it would make getting critical help to those who need it much harder. This week and throughout the year we honor the dispatchers who answer the call.