San Mateo County Honors Public Safety Dispatchers as 'Thin Gold Line'

By Michelle Durand, County of San Mateo:

REDWOOD CITY, CA- "She can kindly, calmly and effectively explain things to callers when situations can be confusing or upsetting.” “She is always striving to do the best she can for her coworkers, the citizens and visitors of San Mateo County and the cops on the street.” “She knows her “stuff!”

These are just a a few of reasons why Dorothy Cordell’s colleagues in the County of San Mateo Office of Public Safety Communications Center (PSC) named her the 2016 Dispatcher of the Year. Cordell, a dispatcher with the County since 1999, was recognized locally as part of National Public Safety Telecommunicators Week which is celebrated April 10-16, 2016. Every year, the second week of April provides an opportunity for the public and coworkers to show appreciation for a dedicated group collectively referred to in public safety circles as the “thin gold line.”

“Dispatchers are the first in the chain of events that starts a response to a call for service. They are an essential component of first response and the critical link to getting those in need the help they require and allocating the most appropriate resources to go to that call. They make critical life-saving decisions every day, calmly and efficiently coordinating the safety of our community members as well as our fire, law and medical teams. The San Mateo County Dispatch Center is the best of the best. They are trained and operate to the highest standards in the industry. We are fortunate to have the safeguard that when somebody calls, they make sure there’s an answer,” said Communications Dispatch Manager Ed Wood.

One of those guiding voices on the other end of the line belongs to Cordell.

“After all this time, I still enjoy my job. The camaraderie with my partners and the law enforcement personnel are invaluable. I also have a strong connection with the community I serve. This has been and continues to be an extremely rewarding career,” Cordell said.

Cordell is one of 44 line and 14 administrative staff working in two 12-hour shifts in the PSC. The internationally accredited center, located in the Hall of Justice basement on the County Center campus in Redwood City, dispatches emergency medical and fire services in Daly City and provides police 911 services in the cities of East Palo Alto, Half Moon Bay, Woodside, Portola Valley, San Carlos, Millbrae and Broadmoor Village. PSC also dispatches for the Sheriff’s Office, serving the unincorporated County, the transit police, the countywide gang task force and County departments like Public Works as needed.

County dispatchers go through approximately 1,000 hours of training before working on their own and maintain 24 hours of continued professional training. In 2015, County dispatchers handled 476,470 emergency 9-1-1 and non-emergency telephone calls for law, fire and emergency medical services.

Throughout the week, the County of San Mateo will honor its dispatchers on its social media channels by sharing important 9-1-1 tips, offering a video peek inside the dispatch center at work and detailing plans for the new Regional Operations Center slated to open on the County campus in October 2017.

County dispatchers will also join their counterparts countywide Thursday, April 14 at an appreciation luncheon held by the San Mateo County Communications Managers Association at the Sheriff’s Office Mounted Patrol Headquarters in Woodside.