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Communicators act as the central nervous system 17 · OAKVILLE BEAVER Friday, May 15, 2009 Continued from page 3 Right now, however, geographic location is not available to his Communications call takers and dispatchers when a 911 call comes in on a cell phone. That means the call takers never hang up on a cell phone caller. If the caller's phone fails to function or they hang up, finding that call for help becomes about as easy as "finding a needle in a haystack," said Hayes. And as younger generations turn to text messaging in droves, Hayes said the local call centre is unable to take any emergency calls if those calls are sent using text messaging or voice over Internet. Despite the fact that Canada's 22 million cell phone users are charged a 50-cent fee for 911 calls, Hayes said he is not clear what that cash is used for -- and he cautions the public to read the fineprint when signing up for Internet phone services. Hayes said he has home Internet and phone service, but because the cable provider has a modem in his home, 911 calls can be traced. Such is not the case in all scenarios, he explained. These are the latest challenges the Communications Room call takers are facing -- none of it comparable, however, to the shift that occurred when typewriters were exchanged for computers. Hayes admitted a recent $80,000 Communications Room upgrade (which had to be completed by in-house staff as calls continued in the highly-secure, 24-7 environment) has continued the efficiency and accountability improvements that have occurred with the computer/information age. Today, as he monitors the seven computer screens in front of him, Hayes observes calls that are colour-coded -- red (in progress), black (service) -- or a green icon that means an officer is available for dispatch. He can also tell by the icon he observes how many officers are on the scene of a call -- and to within metres of where the officer is. A flashing white light circulating around the ceiling of the Communications room means there's a new 911 call waiting to be answered by the first available call taker. TV screens keep call takers up to speed on the news -- even showing television stations' helicopter views of breaking news events -- to help them stay aware of what's going on. "During the lockdown at Sheridan (College, where a tripod suspected as being a weapon locked down the college last year), we had 400 911 calls per hour," said Hayes. "We don't know what the next call is," said Dziedzic, echoing Hayes' comments about training, "Multi-tasking is the biggest feature of the job." That said, it's multi-tasking that takes many of the Communications room staff from the confines of the security room to the Halton Regional Police Mobile Command Unit, a rolling police office equipped with similar communciations equipment as headquarters -- and perhaps more -- when it rolls to the site of tactical emergency, hostage taking or other serious situation. It is the Communications staff's job to equip and get the Mobile Command Unit to the emergency site where the officer in charge then takes charge of the unit. "It provides a rolling workstation needed for incident command," said Hayes, explaining it can be a space away from the media, situation and other people, a large working office, and one often used for hostage negotiations. The Mobile Command Unit has been part of the local police service for six years. "It is a valuable tool that we use when needed," said Hayes, noting its presence at community functions like the Oakville Waterfront Festival and Burlington Sound of Music Festival may be soon re-evaluated as it could be replaced at such functions with a more appropriate police "station" and freed up in the event of an emergency. National Communicator Week was started in 1981 in California by the Contra Costa County Sheriff's Office. Business Advisory Group Free Information Session for Small Business Owners The Small Business Advisory Group, a not for profit organization serving small and start up businesses in the Halton Region for 25 years, is hosting a free information session. 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