Owensboro resident Blake Smith is one of seven telecommunicators at Kentucky State Police Post 16 in Henderson that is being recognized during National Public Safety Telecommunicators Week.
These silent heroes behind the headsets are more than just a voice on the other end of the line. They often save lives on a daily basis.
“KSP telecommunicators are challenged on a daily basis dealing with stressful situations,” said Captain Brenton Ford, commander of KSP Post 16 in Henderson. “Many of these situations involve life and death in which they are expected to handle with compassion, empathy and professionalism.”
Smith — the supervisor at Post 16 — said he loves his job because it’s something new every day.
“This week marks my 10-year anniversary with the Kentucky State Police and every day is different,” he said. “The COVID-19 has even made things even more different.”
He said 911 dispatchers are the heroes you never see.
“Dispatchers are the most dedicated, hard-working people in the business and you walk by them every day in the grocery, out in the parks and never know,” he said. “It’s important to recognize dispatchers because often dispatchers are forgotten about in the emergency services world.”
KSP telecommunicators handle dispatch duties for Kentucky State Police troopers, Commercial Vehicle Enforcement officers, Kentucky Deptarement of Fish and Wildlife Conservation officers and other emergency service agencies. Their duties include calling wrecker services, notifying channels of administration, running license plate, driver’s license numbers, criminal histories and notifying family members while continuing to answer new calls and handling other radio traffic.
Most importantly, they are the calming voice on the other end of the line when someone calls 911 and is most likely having the worst day of their life.
KSP employs 180 telecommunicators at 16 posts throughout the state. In 2019, they answered 2.1 million calls resulting in 500,236 requests for assistance. Post 16 employs seven telecommunicators who handle calls from a six-county area. Last year, they responded to nearly 16,000 calls.
In addition to Smith, employees at Post 16 are Shift Supervisor Matthew Estes of Evansville; Belinda Littrell of Henderson; Alexis McGee of Evansville; Michelle Nunn of Henderson; Jessica Newcom of Sturgis and Haley Buchanan of Sebree.
Smith said he loves his job because it’s something new every day.
“This week marks my 10-year anniversary with the Kentucky State Police and every day is different,” he said. “The COVID-19 has even made things even more different.”
He said 911 dispatchers are the heroes you never see.
“Dispatchers are the most dedicated, hard-working people in the business and you walk by them every day in the grocery, out in the parks and never know,” he said. “It’s important to recognize dispatchers because often dispatchers are forgotten about in the emergency services world.”
During National Telecommunicator’s Appreciation Week, KSP plans to highlight the work of all dispatchers across the state by sharing stories, photos and videos about their efforts on the KSP Facebook, Instagram and Twitter platforms.
For more information or to apply for a telecommunication position with KSP, log on to the state personnel website at www.personnel.ky.gov.
