2004 APCO Canada Public Safety Communicator of the Year
For immediate release—August 10, 2004
Montreal, Quebec--APCO Canada is pleased to announce that Ms. Ronna Straka of E-Comm, Emergency Communications for Southwest British Columbia Incorporated, has been named the 2004 APCO Canada Public Safety Communicator of the Year (COTY). The award was presented today at a special luncheon at the 70th annual APCO International Conference taking place in Montreal. The Luncheon was hosted by the sponsor of the APCO Canada COTY Award M/A-Com Canada, a division of Tyco Electronics.
Ms. Straka, a resident of Burnaby and 14-year veteran of police dispatching, was chosen as the recipient of the Award as the result of her performance as the primary dispatcher for an event in Vancouver in February of this year. A shooting incident in east-end Vancouver resulted in the deployment of a large number of police units and officers simultaneously dealing with a number of potentially armed suspects over a large area. Many of those involved commented that it was largely due to the professional demeanor displayed by Ms. Straka that resulted in a successful conclusion to the incident.
APCO Canada is the Association of Public Safety Communication Officials, affiliated with APCO International and Chapter Affiliates in 26 countries. APCO is the voice of Public Safety Communication in Canada. For more information visit http://www.apco.ca/
E-Comm is the regional emergency communications centre for southwest British Columbia. E-Comm provides 9-1-1 to more than two million residents and dispatch services to selected police and fire departments in southwest BC including the Vancouver Police Department. http://www.ecomm.bc.ca/
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For more information on APCO Canada contact:
Paul Dixon
604-803-4046
For more information on E-Comm contact:
Jasmine Lucky
E-Comm Corporate Communications
604-215-4877
604-868-0544 (cell)