York Regional Police to honour 911 dispatchers

YorkRegion.com
April 8, 2014

York Regional Police will honour several groups during the Tri-Services Emergency Communicators Awards ceremony Thursday.

The event, which is being held in the region’s chamber council in Newmarket, will honour Tanya Highmore, Michele Premus and Platoons A and C.

Ms Highmore will received the call taker award for her approach in speaking to an 11-year-old Jan. 31, 2013 who called 911 about disturbing allegations in the home.

Ms Highmore used a calm and reassuring voice to find out where the girl was and was able to direct police to find her and her brother, police said.

Ms Premus’s professional approach during a home invasion Jan. 16, 2013 earned her the dispatcher of the year award.

Ms Premus spent five hours working with police during the incident.

Police said she maintained her composure and the 42 units sent to the call.

Platoon C will get the award for outstanding performance for the work they do to help officers on the road during a home invasion call.

During a five-hour period, the team was able to manage 42 units during the incident.

Platoon A will receive the award for outstanding achievement in the communication centre for its work during last December’s ice storm.

The call centre became a hub for residents who were looking for help and information about power outages and from those who were not sure what to do.

The platoon took 1,625 calls Dec. 22 in addition to many other non-emergency calls, which worked out to about 100 calls per member.