DETROIT – A Detroit 911 dispatcher’s quick thinking helped firefighters find a man who lost consciousness before he could provide his exact location.
Latonya Estes, who has worked as a 911 dispatcher for nearly three years, was recognized Monday (Aug. 17) for staying on the line and using the sound of a responding fire engine’s siren to help guide crews to the 52-year-old man.
The emergency began when the man called 911 and could only tell Estes that he was somewhere near Puritan Avenue and Schaefer Highway.
He then stopped responding.
“I remember the call,” Estes said. “The man, I heard a grunt, and I was like, ‘Somebody is there. Like, hello, are you there?’ He like, ‘I can’t breathe.’”
Estes kept trying to communicate with the caller, but he couldn’t provide a more precise location.
Then she heard something that could help.
Responding firefighters were nearby, but Estes realized their siren was getting farther away.
“I’m like, wait a minute, turn around, come back because I hear you, but now you’re getting far away,” Estes said. “So I need you to turn around and come back because he can’t tell me where he is, so we got to get to him.”
Estes listened carefully as the siren grew louder and helped guide Engine 30 toward the caller.
Eventually, firefighters located the man.
“I heard the EMS in the background like, ‘Hey buddy, they found him,’” Estes said. “I felt such a sense of relief. Like, oh, I’m so glad I helped him. I got help to him.”
Estes and the other dispatchers who coordinated the response were recognized for their work.
Lt. Delicia Tilford of the Detroit Fire Department said Estes’ persistence and attention to the sounds around the caller were critical.
“She stayed on that line. She listened for the sirens. She gave us the information that we needed, and we were able to respond and provide a citizen with the assistance that they needed,” Tilford said.
For Estes, the recognition was meaningful, but she said her focus throughout the call was simply on keeping the man alive and getting help to him.
“I just didn’t want to give up on him,” she said. “I enjoy helping people. I never thought I would enjoy this job so much.”
Firefighters saved the man, who has since been released from the hospital.