Amid Coronavirus Crisis, Burlington Fire Celebrates Dispatchers

BURLINGTON, MA — The Burlington Fire Department is celebrating dispatchers this week, in a moment of high need due to the new coronavirus. April 12 to 18 is National Public Safety Telecommunicators Week, Chief Micheal Patterson.

"We would not be able to safely render medical aid to our community without the aid of our fire dispatchers," Patterson said. "Now, our fire dispatchers, who are Emergency Medical Dispatcher trained and certified, also ask each caller pertinent questions related to the COVID-19 virus and then pass that critical information on to our first responders."

The department has four dispatchers, Patterson said, who take 90 emergency calls and hundreds of business calls a week. During the pandemic, the dispatchers are particularly vital, as they must find out the coronavirus risk of any given call.

"This critical information allows our first responders to don the proper personal protective equipment that protects both them and the patient before patient interaction even begins," Patterson said.

Monday, the department dealt with calls related to heavy rains and winds, downed power lines and other hazards throughout these towns.

"During these storms, our dispatchers must process several requests for service, often at the same time," Pattesron said. "We at the Burlington Fire Department truly appreciate the hard work and dedication of our fire dispatchers."

Christopher Huffaker can be reached at 412-265-8353 or chirs.huffaker@patch.com.