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She's seen fire, she's seen ice

by Brian Walker
| March 17, 2010 9:00 PM

POST FALLS - Suzi Koep has gotten a thrill out of telling Post Falls police officers where to go for 23 years.

Her directing as a dispatcher will stop on Friday when she retires.

"I've loved the adventure," she said. "How many people get to tell officers where to go?"

Koep knew the job was right for her on her first night when she took an armed robbery call.

"I'm an adrenaline junkie," she said with a smile. "It has been stressful at times and the bad calls bug you for awhile, but you learn to deal with it."

From fire to ice, Koep has been involved in sorting out historic natural disasters.

There was "Fire Storm" in the late 1980s.

"We got one of the first calls from Hauser when it started," she said. "It was dark, the wind was blowing and it kept getting worse and worse all day long. We had our hand-drawn maps out."

An ice storm blanketed the area in the early 1990s, shutting off power through much of the region.

"We used generators for power and blankets to keep warm," she said.

Koep was the lone dispatcher on shift 21 years ago when a boat with four people was swept through the roaring third channel of the Post Falls Dam. Last year, she was among those who welcomed back Bob Pearl, the lone survivor of the incident, on the 20th anniversary.

"It was hectic because I was the only one on and we didn't have the intercommunication (between agencies) that we have now," she said.

The toughest calls, she said, are those involving children.

"The biggest thing is being able to separate yourself from work and home," she said. "When I leave here, I'm done."

Koep was a volunteer EMT and instructor for Post Falls Ambulance for 11 years before being hired at the police department.

"She has dedicated her career to making Post Falls a better, safer community," Police Chief Scot Haug said. "Suzi has always thought of others before she thought of herself, she would work extra hours, come in early or whatever it took to make sure the job got done. She leaves the department better than when she came. She will be missed."

Charlene Holbrook, Koep's supervisor, said Koep will be remembered as a team player and someone who has been easy to talk to both in person and on the other end of the line.

"Suzi cares about people," Holbrook said.

Prior to 911, Koep dispatched ambulance calls over a portable radio from her home. She was the first female to be certified to do extractions at accident scenes.

Her experience made her a logical choice to train other dispatchers on the latest technology, which includes a vehicle license identification system, patrol car laptops, park cameras, "officer down" buttons and officers' location on maps. She was a dispatch supervisor for six years and was at the forefront of transitioning to emergency medical dispatching, now almost a standard with police departments.

The communications center is now a technological wonderland with multiple large screens and special overhead lights, a far cry from having maps spread out on desktops and the days of typing up officers' hand-written reports.

Koep received three days of training when she started. Dispatchers are now shown the ropes over 12 to 16 weeks.

The changes have been a mixed bag, Koep said.

"You used to have more contact with the officers because they needed more information," she said. "But now you can find the information you need a lot quicker and communicate with the fire department."

Koep said staying calm under stressful situations allowed her to stay the course.

"I've thoroughly enjoyed this job because you're always in the know of what's going on, and you get to help people," she said.