Summer is a busy time for the Flathead Valley, as tourists flock in from all over to visit Northwest Montana. The surge in visitors keeps first responders in Flathead County busy, especially its 911 dispatchers.  

“We do have a much larger increase in call volume over the summer, when all the tourists arrive in the area,” said 911 Center Director Austin Hicks. 

Last summer, the Flathead Emergency Communication Center received 35,328 calls, with 9,672 of those calls dialing 911 and 22,725 calls for non-emergencies. The remaining calls were made by emergency responders in the field, Hicks said. 

Flathead County’s sole dispatching service has struggled to hire and retain 911 dispatchers since the pandemic, and summer has proved to be a strenuous time on its limited staff. As of April 15, seven out of 22 dispatcher spots are still vacant, not including part-time positions.  

Hicks, who is in his first year as 911 center director, thought it would be helpful to contract temporary 911 dispatchers from June through August to alleviate scheduling issues. The extra hands would give current staff a break and lift some of the pressure from the magnified call volume, he said. 

“There’s multiple pieces to this, but a lot of it has to do with coverage,” said Human Resources Director Tammy Skramovsky at a county commissioners’ meeting in March. “We’ve been shorthanded there for a long time, so it’s to help with that gap — especially during the summer months when people would like to take vacation.” 

County commissioners unanimously supported a memorandum of agreement at a March 10 meeting from the 911 dispatchers’ union to contract temporary 911 dispatchers. Nearly a month later, on April 9, county commissioners approved a request for proposal seeking a three-month contract for four temporary 911 dispatchers to work up to 50 hours per week. Two temporary dispatchers will work the day shift, and two will be scheduled for night shifts.  

“We have, for many years, struggled with a large gap in our dispatching system for personnel,” said Commissioner Randy Brodehl. “This is one tool that we’ll have to solve that issue.” 

While the contract is for three months, the proposal includes an option to renew for additional emergency dispatch services over the next five years. Payment and contract terms will be negotiated with the awarded contractor.  All bids are due by April 29 and will be considered at the commissioners’ April 30 meeting. A contract is expected to be awarded by May 5. 

Hicks said this is the first time the county has considered contracting temporary emergency dispatchers. The contract will also provide additional training opportunities, he added. 

“As we still are working towards hiring and getting staff trained up, I felt this could be a good option for us,” Hicks said. “Utilizing temporary dispatchers will lessen the strain on our current staff over our busiest months.” 

Report for America reporter Hannah Shields can be reached at (406) 758-4439 or [email protected]. If you value local journalism, pledge your support at dailyinterlake.com/support.