911 dispatch centers see uptick in calls on New Year's Eve

PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - "It can be pretty intense where we're inundated with non-emergency as well as emergency calls," Juana Green said.

While many celebrated the beginning of the new year, others made sure the celebrations were safe.

911 operators were working through the night on New Year's Eve, and they usually see an influx of calls.

So, many operating centers increase staff to help with the higher volume. The No. 1 reason for calls usually falls under the category of gunshots or fireworks reports.

Green is the director of 911 Communications in Little Rock.

Last New Year's Eve, she saw a 20% call increase because of these reports.

"Our priority is 911. And we want to be able to get everyone the help they need as quickly as possible, Green added. "It's going to be a high call volume. And we're going to get to those calls as quickly as we can."

Due to the increase in calls, operators want to remind everyone to be patient as they try to respond.