Swain County emergency management reports more than 11,700 911 calls and equipment refreshes

Misty Taber, representing the county’s 911 emergency management and addressing office, briefed the commissioners on call volume and recent operations. Taber reported 11,743 total calls to dispatch from Jan. 1 through April 30 and 6,231 calls classified as calls for service. She supplied a departmental breakdown including EMS, police, the sheriff’s department, rescue squads and multiple fire departments; Taber said duplicate reporting and informational calls account for the gap between total calls and calls for service.

Taber said the center completed a scheduled equipment refresh — updating consoles and radios per the State 911 Board’s expectations — and described outreach during Telecommunicator Week. The addressing team added 62 new addresses and four new street names to county records during the reporting period. She also summarized emergency-management activations: two named winter storms (Fern and Giana) and a temporary statewide burn ban that was lifted May 3. Taber said the county provided MREs and coordinated assistance through the sheriff’s office and rental companies when residents were stranded during severe weather.

Commissioners asked follow-up questions about assistance during storms and housing of displaced visitors; Taber said the sheriff’s department and partner agencies supplied some support and that the county provided prepacked items and information to visitors unfamiliar with mountain conditions. No formal action was taken; the report was accepted during the session.