Yellowhead County celebrates 50 years of 9-1-1

April’s Telecommunicator Week is a time to honour the men and women behind 9-1-1. Yellowhead County encourages you to extend your kind words of support for our dispatchers!

Did you know that this past February marks the 50th anniversary of 9-1-1 dispatching worldwide? Yellowhead Regional Emergency Communication Center (YRECC), is proud to be taking part in the prolific history of the “Thin Gold Line”—an apt moniker for the men and women who literally answer our community’s call for help daily.

Here’s a brief history of the evolution of emergency dispatching in North America:

• In 1957, the United States’ National Association of Fire Chiefs recommended that a single threedigit standard be used to report fires.

• In March of 1964, 28-year-old New Yorker Kitty Genovese was murdered before 38 witnesses. None reported the incident to emergency responders, though her tragic death spurred an interest in a simple and immediate emergency line: the 9-1-1 call system.

• In the late ‘60s, the President’s Commission on Law Enforcement and Administration of Justice, the Federal Communications Commission, and AT&T would recommend the implementation of 9-1-1 nationwide.

• In 1973, the U.S. officially began promoting 9-1-1 as the nationwide, standardized emergency number.

• In 1972, Canada adopted 9-1-1 as the official emergency number, though its first use would come in 1974, in London, Ontario.

Today, it’s estimated that 98 per cent of Canadians have access to this vital protective service. Undoubtedly, you or someone you know may have been affected by the dedication and professionalism of our YRECC dispatchers. If you’d like to extend a warm message to show appreciation for our dispatchers, or would like to share your story (which will remain anonymous) please do so—email your thoughts to communications@ yellowheadcounty.ab.ca.

And with the upcoming Telecommunicator Week, which is a time to celebrate our evervigilant dispatchers, Yellowhead County’s Facebook page will be a platform for your kind wishes and the stories of our dispatcher’s most touching and crucial public service moments.

Stay tuned for more announcements leading up to Telecommunicator Week (April 8–14)!