Paul Bass, LinkedIn Photos
911 stalwarts Joe Vitale, David Mancini, and Kenya James.
One of the year’s 164,949 emergency calls to New Haven’s 911 center came from a man at the edge of a bridge. Kenya James answered it.
The man was despondent enough that he was ready to jump to end his life.
James kept him on the phone. She asked about his family members. She spoke to him about what was upsetting him.
She simultaneously informed the police shift commander on duty about the emergency so officers could rush to the scene.
Help is on the way, James assured the caller. By the time the officers arrived, the man had stepped back from the edge. New Haven’s 911 operators had worked fast to help save another life.
Communities across the country are paying tribute to that work during annual National Public Safety Telecommunicators Week.
In New Haven James and 35 workers do that work on the fourth floor of the police department at 1 Union Ave. The call center is called the Public Service Answering Point, or PSAP.
Joe Vitale, who runs PSAP, told the story of James’ 2023 life-saving call Tuesday during a conversation on WNHH FM’s “Dateline New Haven” program.
The number of 911 calls coming into PSAP has grown by roughly 10,000 to 15,000 a year, Vitale reported. PSAP answered 90.31 percent of its calls within 10 seconds in the last quarter of 2023.
The number of 911 calls handled by surrounding towns in 2023 didn’t come close: 36,447 by Hamden, 13,440 by North Haven, 12,876 by East Haven, 29,199 by West Haven.
Bass Photo
PSAP's new patch, containing city seal.
Mirroring a national trend in public safety, PSAP has had trouble finding enough people to hire and train to handle all those calls. That requires workers to pull extra shifts for the stressful work. Vitale said he’s working hard to build the staff to 47 or 48.
Meanwhile, PSAP has paid special attention to employees’ mental health with both training and ensuring people get a break after handling particularly stressful calls like walking parents through CPR.
Vitale also urged the public to remember that 911 is for emergency calls only.
David Mancini, who has worked at PSAP for 26 and a half years, also appeared on the “Dateline” episode. He spoke of growing up at Church Street South, then going into 911 work out of a sense of commitment to his home city. He has worked his way up in the department, now serving as a supervisor and trainer.
Click on the above video to watch the conversation with Joe Vitale and David Manicini of New Haven’s 911 emergency call center on WNHH FM’s “Dateline New Haven.” Click here to subscribe or here to listen to other episodes of Dateline New Haven.
It's been almost 24 hours and not one thing on the NHI about the riot and shooting in West Haven that led to a double shooting in New Haven. Two police officers injured in the mayhem. I heard reports of girls dancing on police cars at the New Haven shooting. Maybe if the city built an ATV and dirt bike track none of this would have happened.