Public Safety Telecommunicator / Communications / Dispatch

SOUTH WALTON FIRE DISTRICT

Public Safety Telecommunicator

Agency: The South Walton Fire District (SWFD) is a professional fire/rescue agency located in Walton County Florida. SWFD maintains 5 fire stations, a communications center and provides beach safety services for the South Walton Beaches. SWFD is responsible for Fire Protection, Emergency Medical Services Transport, Lifeguards, Hazard Mitigation, Public Fire/Life Safety Education and Prevention as well as 911 Communication Services for an area of 84 square miles. South Walton is an area that runs from the Okaloosa/Walton County line on the west, to the Walton/Bay County line on the east and from Choctawhatchee Bay (Intracoastal Waterway) north, to the Gulf of Mexico on the south. Included in this area are 26 miles of beaches and 26 miles of inland waterways. The population of South Walton ranges from 40,000 to over 150,000 during the tourist season.

Job Description: The South Walton Fire District is currently seeking applicants for the position of Public Safety Telecommunicator. Responsible for operational work in the day-to-day operations of the Communications Division. This position functions as a Public Safety Telecommunicator for emergency and non-emergency responses for the South Walton Fire District. General supervision is received from the Communications Lieutenant(s) or Communications Director, who reviews work and evaluates performance based on efficiency, effectiveness and adherence to established procedures.

Major Duties:

• Operates a multi-line telephone console system, alerting system, text-to-911 system, and TDD system for the deaf and hearing-impaired.
• Transmits and receives transmissions on a complex 800 MHz trunked radio system.

• Determines and assigns the call’s priority level and enters the data into a computer-aided dispatch system for radio dispatch purposes.

• Performs emergency medical/fire/beach safety dispatch and crisis intervention services.
• Asks vital questions and provides pre-arrival instructions for emergency calls.
• Monitors and operates a radio console and computer equipment.
• Asks questions to interpret, analyze and anticipate the caller’s situation to resolve problems, provide information, dispatch emergency services, or refer callers to other agencies.
• Dispatches and coordinates the responses of public safety agencies.
• Uses computers, telephones, radio, maps and printed resource materials to process emergency information accurately and quickly.

• Accesses various computer information systems and databases to retrieve, verify and enter data.

• Strategic selection of emergency fire and/or rescue apparatus to accomplish the goals of saving lives and property
• Performs other duties of a similar nature or level.

Required Skills:

• The ability to develop and maintain cooperative and professional relationships with fellow employees, representatives from other departments and supervisors.
• Knowledge of District policies, guidelines, protocols and related ordinances.
• The ability to follow directions, protocols, and procedures.
• The ability to speak clearly and succinctly during stressful situations and speak with upset persons in such a way as to determine the nature of the problem for appropriate call transfer and pre-arrival procedures.
• The ability to use logic and reasoning to reach conclusions and approaches to problems.
• The ability to use judgment and decision-making skills to evaluate situations, establish priorities and resolve matters.
• The ability to think quickly.
• The ability to remain calm in stressful situations; the capacity to work with advanced telecommunications equipment.
• The ability to understand and follow written and oral instructions.
• The ability to write clearly and spell correctly.
• The ability to establish priorities and pass on information as needed.
• The ability to remain on duty for extended periods when staffing or other emergencies exist.
• The ability to report for duty in extreme weather and road conditions.
• The ability to perform multiple physical functions often simultaneously (listen, speak, record, type, and transfer calls).

Supervisory Controls:

Communications Lieutenant(s)

Physical Demands:

• Reaching, extensive sitting, speaking, hearing, seeing and repetitive motions.
• Sedentary Work: Exerting up to 50 pounds of force occasionally and/or a negligible amount of force frequently or constantly to lift, carry, push, pull or otherwise move objects, including the human body. Sedentary work involves sitting most of the time. Jobs are sedentary if walking and standing are required only occasionally and all other sedentary criteria are met.

· Must successfully pass the Fire District’s drug screen, background check and reference check requirement as a condition of employment.

Work Environment

· General office environment.

· Position subject to high stress situations with varying hours of operations, extended hours of operations to include night shift work.

· Work shifts are performed in 12-hour shifts, day or night.

NOTE: Reasonable accommodation considerations will be made for otherwise qualified individuals with a disability.

Supervisory and Management Responsibility:

None

Minimum Qualifications:

• High School diploma or GED, or an equivalent combination of education and experience sufficient to successfully perform the essential duties of the job such as those listed above.
• Valid unrestricted Florida Driver’s License
• Must be able to work rotating shifts, days, nights, holidays and weekends.
• Must possess above average data entry and typing skills.
• Must be a non-smoking/non-tobacco using person, both on and off the job, at the time of employment and maintain same non-smoking and non-use throughout the term of employment.

Must have or obtain within 12 months of employment:

• International Academy of Emergency Dispatch

o Emergency Fire Dispatch certification

o Emergency Medical Dispatch certification

• Priority Dispatch

o Self-Paced ProQA Training Fire

o Self-Paced ProQA Training Medical

• Federal Bureau of Investigations

o Fingerprinting

o Criminal Justice Information Services Training

• FEMA National Incident Management System certifications

o IS-100 Introduction to the Incident Command System

o IS-200 Basic Incident Command System for Initial Response

o IS-700 Introduction to the National Incident Management System

o IS-800 Introduction to the National Response Framework

• Florida Department of Health

o 911 Public Safety Telecommunicator

o Nationally accepted CPR certification

How to Apply: Applications may be submitted by mail, fax or email to the following:

South Walton Fire District

911 N. County Highway 393

Santa Rosa Beach, FL 32459

850-267-1298 (Office)

850-267-3294 (fax)

www.swfd.org

Job Type: Full-time

Pay: From $18.74 per hour

Benefits:

• Dental insurance
• Employee assistance program
• Health insurance
• Health savings account
• Life insurance
• Paid time off
• Professional development assistance
• Retirement plan
• Tuition reimbursement
• Vision insurance

Schedule:

• 12 hour shift
• Day shift
• Holidays
• Monday to Friday
• Night shift
• Overtime
• Weekend availability

COVID-19 considerations:
Following CDC guidelines.

Work Location: One location