Calling 911 is a service that we may have to use -– fortunately or unfortunately – at least once in our lives. But imagine a scenario where you pick up the phone during an emergency and don’t understand the language on the other line. This would not just be nightmare for many non-English speakers in our country, but it could be a harrowing reality for some.

Dispatch services want to make sure that their residents remain safe, especially in  Nevada where 48% of the state’s total population has been found to speak English “less than very well.”

Maricela Ceballos is a dispatcher at the Carson City Sheriff’s Office (CCSO), and one of the three Spanish speakers on staff.

“Sometimes it’s daily, sometimes it’s once a week,” Ceballos said about how often she speaks Spanish during her shifts at CCSO. “There has been a good chunk [of time] where it was at least daily. It just depends on the nature of and what’s needed.”

Luckily for Latinos in the region, Ceballos is not alone in this demographic. Washoe County Sheriff’s Office (WCSO) also has bilingual members of their team who specialize in Spanish, and when resources are scarce they utilize the interpretation and translation service Voiance for both 911 and non-emergency calls, according to the WSCO’s public information officer.

CCSO also provides a language line for when resources are low on hand for other languages. Ceballos mentioned she needed to use it for a Mandarin speaker during a recent call.

Each agency hires its own dispatchers despite this; the Reno and Sparks Police Departments have their own hiring processes as well.

Ceballos will have worked in dispatch for 19 years come this April and she doesn’t plan on going anywhere. When asked about her background with Spanish, she explained that it was her first language, so utilizing it during intense phone calls is rather a reflex than a skill she’s studied for.

“When I got this job, I was kind of thrown into it. There are some words I have to google since I don’t know proper Spanish,” she said with a smile, and then went on. “When you’re taking an emergency call, you don’t really have a chance to second guess yourself. It comes naturally because it’s my first language, and there’s something in me that just knows what to try.”

She then admits: “Sometimes it comes out as Spanglish while trying to help them — which is something! It’s more than what they would’ve gotten without a Spanish speaker.”

There is a financial bonus at the CCSO for being able to speak another language, but Ceballos explains that there’s also an emotional payoff as well.

“[Speaking Spanish] is another way to help people … [for those] who may feel a little more comfortable,” she explained referring to how her callers defer to Spanish when they’re in a stressful situation. 

“It goes a little farther than just speaking their language, but [about] understanding them.”