Town of Lexington 911 Chief of Communications Sharmel Miller and her husband, Chris, are happy to call Lexington home. “I have family in Lexington, so we would visit here all of the time. That’s what made me interested in moving here. I just wish I had made Lexington my home a lot sooner,” Miller said. The Millers have three children, Dustin, Brittany, and Heather, and seven grandchildren. They enjoy camping and going to the beach with their family.
As 911 Chief of Communications, Miller leads a team of public safety personnel who process emergency and non-emergency calls for Lexington County. She has worked in 911 operations for 25 years, and started with Lexington County as Chief of Communications in February 2023. One of the most notable changes throughout her nearly 30-year career has been technology’s impact on how calls are processed.
“When it comes to the 911 industry, there are changes all the time. Changes from how we process calls and then also the technology.” Miller said. She noted how the use of cellphones presented a challenge to emergency services when they first started being used.
“We went strictly from landlines to cell phones in the 90s. We had to learn how to adapt from having the exact location with landlines to processing cell phone calls with little to no information about where the caller was. That was a stressful time, because when someone using a cell phone had an emergency, we had no clue where they were unless they could tell us. That could be difficult if they were screaming for help and we are trying to calm them to get the exact location where they are. As the industry changes with technology, so does 911.”
Today, Miller said that some callers still use landlines, though it is rare, and while cell phone technology has improved, locations are still not exact. When someone calls 911 through a wireless phone, cellular towers will direct the call to the nearest public safety answering point based on the location of the call.
“Once the call comes in, we process it. Then we have a system in place that, based upon the nature of the incident, we ask certain questions. And every citizen (based on that nature code) gets the same set of questions. That allows dispatchers to have structure within our system so that everybody is getting the same level of service.”
Miller clarified that the questions do not delay help in arriving. “We always let the caller know that these questions are not delaying their service on their call, and then we process those calls that go to the dispatcher. The information is provided to the responders.” Miller also emphasized that helping people discern between when or when not to call 911 is crucial to ensuring that the line stays clear for emergencies.
“Anytime something is life critical – call 911 immediately, as soon as possible. But if someone has loud music on, or if you have a fireworks complaint with the holidays coming up, that is not a reason to call 911. Please call the nonemergency number so that you are not tying up those resources that could potentially delay someone who is having a life critical situation. Now, if a firework sets a tree or house on fire or something similar, you would need to call 911. Anything that has an immediate threat to someone’s life, safety or if there is a crime in progress – you definitely should call 911 immediately,” Miller said.
Lexington County offers free services for citizens, such as SMART911, where they can provide critical information that will aid public safety personnel in responding to emergency situations. Those interested can sign up through the Lexington County government website under Communications – 911. “We can’t see anyone’s profile unless they call 911 and need emergency services, and then once the emergency is over the profile becomes private again.”
Miller says she enjoys her job, and that helping people is the priority of her and her colleagues. “Being able to talk someone through an emergency situation and getting them to help is why I continue to do what I do. We want to make sure our responders and our citizens have the best service. Responder safety and citizen safety again is our top priority.”