WILKES-BARRE, Pa. — They're the first to answer the call.
"They're there for people on their worst days, there's not a lot of happy calls that come in 911," said Lucille Morgan, director of the Luzerne County Emergency Services.
Between the stress of the job with long hours and low pay, 911 operators have been hard to come by for years in Luzerne County.
"Our management team has been sitting on the floor assisting with staffing to answer 911 calls, to dispatch our agencies, so everybody's really been spread thin," said Gina Krone, PSAP operations manager.
But now the seats are filled with a new generation, putting on their headsets in Wilkes-Barre. There's a class of fourteen 911 trainees, the largest class the county's ever had.
"So I went for the in for the interview, and I got to sit on the floor and got to learn a couple things about the job, and that really peaked my interest on it," said James O'rourke, 911 operator trainee.
This comes amid the merging of services in Luzerne County; 911 and the emergency management agency are now consolidated, and with them, a new director.
Lucy Morgan comes with 35 years of experience, starting as a switchboard operator.
"Luckily, I have great staff at both departments and if they didn't welcome me with open arms, it never would have worked. Because I needed them as much as, hopefully, they needed me," said Morgan.
This class is so big that they had to move their training into a different space for the 16-week program. The extra staffing allows for better hours and pay.
"We did some changes with shifts. We started 12-hour shifts that rotate and give people every other weekend off for new employees," added Krone.
At its height, the county had more than 30 vacancies in the 911 call center. These new recruits dropped it down to nine.
"It's definitely not for everybody. But we feel like we have a really good set of people there, and they'll make it through," said Krone.
A group that is ready to answer the call as Morgan has and continues to do for more than 30 years.
"You'll never be rich doing this job, but to help somebody and be there for them and just do the best that we can," added Morgan.
The group has 16 weeks of training before they officially begin their shifts in Luzerne County.