Northwest Iowa — This week is National Public Safety Telecommunicators Week. The week, sponsored by the Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials (APCO) International and celebrated annually, honors the thousands of men and women who respond to emergency calls, dispatch emergency professionals and equipment, and render life-saving assistance to the world’s citizens.
Lyon County Sheriff Stewart Vander Stoep tells us their dispatchers are their front line.
Vander Stoep says the dispatchers deserve a lot of credit and thanks from the community.
The sheriff says that while the job of a deputy is stressful too, they at least get to go to the scene and see everything that happens. And he says that sometimes gives them closure, which the dispatchers don’t always get a chance to experience. He says we all owe a lot to the 911 operators and dispatchers in northwest Iowa.
For more information, you can visit www.npstw.org. For more information on Lyon County Dispatch in particular, you can visit lyoncosheriff.com/dispatch.
Photo caption: Two young people watch Lyon County Dispatcher Sandy Wissink work during a recent tour of the Lyon County Law Enforcement Center.
