The hub of emergency communications for most of the residents of Pierce County is the LESA Communications Center. Completed in August 1990 at a total cost of $1.5 million (including all equipment), the 8,600 square foot state-of-the-art facility is staffed by about 80 full-time, highly-trained professionals. Specialized job titles range from Communications Officers (who answer incoming emergency and non-emergency calls), Dispatchers (who radio information to law enforcement officers in the field) and Supervisors (who oversee the daily operations of the center). All utilize the latest technology to direct emergency police, fire and medical aid responses throughout the second most populous county in Washington state – an area spanning over 1,800 square miles with topographical extremes ranging from the shores of Puget Sound to the 14,411-foot summit of Mt. Rainier.
The LESA Communications Center is the PSAP (Public Safety Answering Point) for Pierce County's three largest law enforcement agencies – the Pierce County Sheriff's Department, the Tacoma Police Department and the Lakewood Police Department – as well as eight incorporated city agencies. Though fewer than half of all calls received in the Communications Center are true emergencies, the sheer volume of incoming calls ensure there is always an electric atmosphere, with brief lulls interrupted by flurries of calls that run the gamut of human emotion – from heartbreak to hilarity, horror to exhilaration.
Communications personnel enjoy a profession that encompasses most of the excitement of police work, but none of the danger. A rigorous screening and training regimen coupled with an attractive benefits package, as well as the state’s highest pay for this line of work, combine to attract a caliber of applicant that ensures LESA's continued reputation as one of the most elite and well-respected agencies in the field of emergency communications.
See the Calling 9-1-1 page for information about using 9-1-1 and the non-emergency number (253-798-4721).
New employees receive five weeks of academic training prior to beginning their on-the-job training in the Communications Center. During this initial five-week academic period, new employees are taken on two GEO (geographic orientation) rides to familiarize them with the entire county, as well as given a tour of the other divisions of LESA.
Each new employee is initially trained as a Communications Officer (whether hired as Communications Officer or Dispatcher), which encompasses eight weeks – two weeks on day shift and six weeks on swing shift. Midway through the floor training process, a mid-point review is conducted by a designated trainer to ensure the trainee and trainer are on track and progressing appropriately. Near the end of the eight weeks, new employees undergo a skills assessment conducted by a designated trainer who has not previously trained them on a continuous basis. LESA’s training program includes a geography orientation class, use of NetRMS (Records Management System), disaster response training, NIMS (National Incident Management System) certification and a Positron (computer phone) skills class.
New employees hired as Dispatchers will spend two or three weeks working as Communications Officers prior to moving on to the three-week Intro to Dispatch class. During the three weeks of this dispatch academic training, trainees are exposed to all aspects of dispatching, including a geography ride to familiarize them with the major boundaries, landmarks and the basic layout of Pierce County. Dispatchers then train on the radio – double-plugged with a tenured dispatcher – for six weeks on day shift, three weeks on graveyard shift, and six weeks on swing shift. At no time are trainees left alone during this period. A skills assessment is done prior to the end of swing shift training. If the trainee is successful, s/he is released from training to then work with two partner dispatchers (not double-plugged with a trainer), in an uncounted status for one or two weeks. During this time, there will always be an extra dispatcher on duty to fill-in for breaks.
LESA utilizes a mentoring program to assist a new employee who has an area of minor concern that does not preclude him/her from being released from training. Our training team members are certified APCO (Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials) trainers and our training is APCO-based. We do utilize "specialty trainers" who are not required to be APCO-certified.
The hub of emergency communications for most of the residents of Pierce County is the LESA Communications Center. Completed in August 1990 at a total cost of $1.5 million (including all equipment), the 8,600 square foot state-of-the-art facility is staffed by about 80 full-time, highly-trained professionals. Specialized job titles range from Communications Officers (who answer incoming emergency and non-emergency calls), Dispatchers (who radio information to law enforcement officers in the field) and Supervisors (who oversee the daily operations of the center). All utilize the latest technology to direct emergency police, fire and medical aid responses throughout the second most populous county in Washington state – an area spanning over 1,800 square miles with topographical extremes ranging from the shores of Puget Sound to the 14,411-foot summit of Mt. Rainier.
Each new employee is initially trained as a Communications Officer (whether hired as Communications Officer or Dispatcher), which encompasses eight weeks – two weeks on day shift and six weeks on swing shift. Midway through the floor training process, a mid-point review is conducted by a designated trainer to ensure the trainee and trainer are on track and progressing appropriately. Near the end of the eight weeks, new employees undergo a skills assessment conducted by a designated trainer who has not previously trained them on a continuous basis. LESA’s training program includes a geography orientation class, use of NetRMS (Records Management System), disaster response training, NIMS (National Incident Management System) certification and a Positron (computer phone) skills class.