The ability to impose control on otherwise uncontrollable situations is very much at the heart of the fire service. To that end, the dispatcher is a vital link. Like the firefighter, he must preplan, know his tools, drill, and be disciplined. Those unfamiliar with communications center operations may think that a dispatcher's job is sometimes exciting, often dull, and not especially demanding. It's what you don't hear over the scanner that is demanding.
Dispatchers talk on the phone to panic-stricken and disoriented people.
They may be the last hope in life for some of them - and in some cases, even that hope is not sufficient. Although they are required to remain calm and controlled on the air, inside they pay the price in stress. The quickly developing disruptive force of the dispatcher's critical incident is focused through a telephone conversation with one person. It's intensely personal. One of the dispatching staff goes over t a console and picks up the call while the others continue talking.