9 things to know about 911
by Tammy Price, Chief, Baltimore County 911 Center
911 has been featured in television shows (Rescue 911, and 9-1-1) and movies (Operator and The Call) so you may be pretty familiar with the profession, but there are some things you may not know about your local Baltimore County 911 Center.
Did you know?
We are only 39 years old! It seems like 911 has always been around, but The Baltimore County 911 Center has only been in operation since January 15, 1980. In fact, the very first 911 call was made a mere 12 years before -- in Alabama on February 16, 1968.
We’re the 3rd largest 911 center in Maryland! As such, we handle over 800,000 calls for service each year – that’s an average of about 2,200 calls per day.
We are a civilian organization. While we work in conjunction with the Police and Fire Departments, we are a separate agency.
\We have over 200 employees. Our dedicated men and women are the FIRST of the first responders.
Answering our questions doesn’t delay help. The location of the emergency is the most important piece of information you can give us. Once we have the location, we will dispatch the call and then ask the rest of our questions while help is on the way.
Our non-emergency number is 410-887-2222. This is a 24 hour number that you can use to report non-emergency situations in Baltimore County.
Young children call 911 too! Early education is key, so we attend community events and teach an elementary education program to help young children learn about 911.
In our profession, we are known as telecommunicators. However, each 911 Center’s job title may vary. In Baltimore County, our calltakers and dispatchers are called Emergency Communications Technicians (ECTs).
National Telecommunicators Week celebrates our calltakers and dispatchers. Each year, a week in April is designated as National Telecommunicators Week to recognize the work our men and women do. Just as the police and fire departments have the thin blue and red lines, our profession is identified by the Thin Gold Line.