BATH

The Sagadahoc County Communications Center announced Wednesday it has completed specialized training to ensure it can handle a growing number of 911 calls about missing and exploited children.

Sagadahoc County Communications Center staff recently met all criteria of the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children’s Missing Kids Readiness Project.

The Missing Kids Readiness Project is now incorporated into the Sagadahoc County Communications Center’s policies and training material.

“This partnership validates that the citizens and visitors of Sagadahoc County receive the proper response when dealing with a missing child,” said Brodie Hinckley, director of the Sagadahoc County Communications Center. “Our center is committed to the safety of those we serve and this helps raise that level.”

Hinckley participated in a two-day training offered by the NCMEC earlier this year, and said Wednesday he hopes the training held in Maine last week will help encourage more call centers to adopt the recommended policies and training.

After Hinckley’s certification, each of the 15 dispatchers undertook a two-hour online class. The communications center has also put in place policies and trainings that were in line with those already in place, but are more in depth.

This way, when someone calls, he or she will be asked the same question every time by every dispatcher, regardless of their experience, Hinckley said.

Sagadahoc County’s call center is only one or two out of the 26 call centers in Maine that have joined the partnership, according to Hinckley.

The call center is located on High Street in the building that houses the sheriff ’s department and superior court house.

“It’s about being prepared for the big call,” Hinckley said. “We do get a lot of children missing.”

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