"I can't swim! Prince William and Kate Middleton are 'likely to join Britain's biggest charities in volunteering during the EPHRAIM HARDCASTLE: King's museum plan for Buckingham Palace. Absolutely', he said. I dont want to die, she repeated. UPDATE: FORT SMITH, Ark. By While Reneau's boss agreed that the way she spoke to Stevenswasn't ideal, he did admit that it wasn't so bad that he would ever have considered firing a dispatcher for it. So now he is demanding an apology. When we are unsuccessful, it hurts.". Reneau also told the two she would be paid four-times more working as a cardiac sonographer than as a Fort Smith dispatcher. I'm scared! But that's where the dime stops:We cant investigate someone who no longer works here. Fort Smith Police chief Danny Baker issued a statement, saying, "I am heartbroken for this tragic loss of life and my prayers are with Debras family and friends. 4.41am: Fire department is dispatched to the scene. I'm gonna drown,'" Diane recalled. Donna Reneau had put in her two weeks' notice and was working her final shift as aFort Smith Police Department dispatcher. Reneau's interactions with Stevens made national news. Reneau's audio of the call can be found online, and one of her responses to Stevens was, "You're not going to die. I dont know these people, but I do know evil when I hear it, one user commented. ", The department received hundreds of phone calls saying Reneau was disrespectful for scolding Stevens as she sobbed and asked for help and for telling her this will teach you next time dont drive in the water., Debra Stevens, 47, pictured left was on her regular newspaper route when a flash flood swept up her car. 4:01 pm. The audio of the 911 call was. "I sure will., Reneau, who was working her final shift after giving her notice two weeks notice, told Stevens that authorities will get there when they get there and that she's not going to die, at one point telling her to "shut up. Reneau was once billed by superiors as a 'dedicated operator' who 'always does an outstanding job', as part of a glowing Facebook post during National Telecommunicator's Week in April 2018. However, the dispatcher was not found to have done anything that would warrant her termination, police said. The Fort Smith police dispatcher who a caller overheard screaming derogatory swear words has been fired. Stevens later drowned. I know the water level is high but you freaking out is doing nothing but losing your oxygen so calm down', Reneau said in the audio. 5.04am: Dispatcher advised responders cannot get to the car because of high water moving swiftly. 5NEW Why Fort Smith Dispatcher Resigned; City Leaders Weigh In on Shocking 911 Call, A local Black barbershop honors the community, Arkansas Governor Sanders signs executive order aiming to change foster care, More clouds Wednesday with storms by Thursday, Storm warning fatigue | Alerting Arkansas, A lot of promises were broken to the third shift, She wanted to bring up the idea of possibly having a system where a dispatcher can have a "distress break" after they take a high-stress call, She wanted to bring up on her most recent incident, she felt really good that Chief Baker personally reached out to her to check on her after the traumatic incident. Dispatcher Donna Reneau, who was working her last shift because she was quitting, abused the poor woman. Her car had been swept . Stevens repeatedly told the dispatcher that she was going to die because the water was rising up past her chest and had engulfed the inside of her SUV. Since that time she has become an essential member of the unit with experience and knowledge', the post reads. Baker said 911 had been inundated with calls at the time from people who were also stranded in flood waters. 'You're not going to die. Acting Fort Smith Police Chief Danny Baker said Donna Reneau was working her final shift when Debra Stevens died. The face of #EVIL #donnareneau. Mayor of Fort Smith, Arkansas Mr. George B. McGill, This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google. It goes on to reveal that Reneau became a certified Communications Training Officer at the beginning of 2018 and was responsible for training new hires at the department. I know the water level is high but you freaking out is doing nothing but losing your oxygen so calm down', Reneau said in the audio. Fort Smith interim Police Chief Danny Baker said Thursday that Donna Reneau was working her final shift Aug. 24 when Debra Stevens died. Stevens had been. Please help me. She couldve been deemed to have broken human resource standards if shed still been an employee but nothing to merit a measure of discipline as strict as termination, Pitts wrote. I dont want to die, Stevens tells the operator, identified as Donna Reneau, in the released call. 5.02am: Responders report they have located the vehicle. He said at the time that the police department would be investigating its policies into responses and their dispatch center in the wake of Stevens' death. Debra Stevens, 47, had been delivering newspapers in the early hours of August 24 in Fort Smith, Arkansas, when she accidentally drove into rising flood waters that swept her SUV off the road. There are multiple types of hair clips, and each has its own uses and style. Police acknowledged the 911 call sounded 'calloused and uncaring at times' but insisted that 'sincere efforts' were made to try and located Stevens. On August 24, Stevens called 911 at 4:38 a.m. and told Reneau shed been delivering newspapers for the Southwest Times Record when a flash flood washed her SUV off the road. At one point, amid Stevens' cries and pleas for help, Reneau told her, "You're not gonna die, I don't know why you're freaking out Did they find her? Authorities said that when they did eventually locate her, rising waters made an immediate rescue impossible. Also exacerbating response and rescue efforts were the facts that Mrs. Stevens was having trouble describing her exact location and flooding limited the ability of first responders to reach her, said a press releaseissued by the police. Reneau faced no criminal charges in Stevens death. A former Arkansas 911 dispatcher was cleared of wrongdoing following accusations that she mishandled a call with a drowning woman and told her to "shut up" just moments before she died. Reneau also suggested dispatchers get a distress break after taking a high-stress call. Absolutely,' he said. Debbie Stevens, 47, who was trapped as floodwaters [] "I do forgive her, even though it's hard," said Rebeca. She worked in Fort Smith, Arkansas as a 911 dispatcher. Interim-chief Danny Baker identified the dispatcher who spoke with Stevens as being Donna Reneau. She was not criminally charged in the death of 47-year-old Debra Stevens'. However, she was once billed by superiors as a dedicated operator who always does an outstanding job, as part of a glowing Facebook post during National Telecommunicators Week in April 2018. 4.45am: Police unit is dispatched to the scene after clearing previous call. However, an investigation into our policies, our responses, our dispatch center, Ive talked to the fire chief. It is not clear if Stevens' 911 call was the last one she took. Sopranos star John Ventimiglia's daughter Odele dead at 25: Family is 'heartbroken' by her passing just Boris Johnson lands 500k advance for his eagerly-awaited memoir covering his time as Prime Minister. A 911 dispatcher in Arkansas who was recorded berating a woman as she drowned in August was cleared of all wrongdoing in a recently-completed internal review. (P. "Will you pray with me?" Dispatcher Donna Reneau from the Fort Smith Police Department had given her two-weeks notice and was working her very last shift when 47-year-old Debra Stevens called in. Reneau had given her notice two weeks earlier. 5.00am: 911 call is disconnected between caller and dispatch. Inside the forest palace 'Putin shares with his gymnast lover and their secret children': Luxury estate My nightmare neighbours kept throwing condoms and rubbish in our garden - I took epic revenge and they never Seat swapping on planes is a hot topic - but what ARE the do's and don'ts? RELATED:New Details About A Baby Who Was Accidentally Locked Inside A Hot Car And Why A 911 Operator Refused To Send Police To Help. The 911 call came in at 4:38 a.m. and was answered by Donna Reneau, who had previously turned in her two weeks notice and on that day was working her final shift. Im sorry maam, I didnt see it, she said. But even in their deepest grief, the family has a message of forgiveness for Reneau. At one point, Stevens got frantic and had this exchange with the dispatcher. Stevens called 911 before her death, and Reneau answered her call. But, even when calm down is required, what 911 callers dont expect when theyre frantic for help is condescension and impatience from the operator, and certainly not during the last moments of their life. Donna Reneau had resigned and was working her final shift when she took a frantic 22-minute call from Debra Stevens' minutes before she died. Stevens repeatedly apologized to the dispatcher, saying she didn't even see the water before she drove into it and that she had never done anything like this before. and As Stevens became more frantic, she kept asking how much longer it would take for first responders to get to her because no one was helping her. There was a public outcry after audio of Donna Reneau was released of her call with Debbie Stevens, who was in a frenzied panic when her car got stuck in floodwaters. By the time rescue crews were able to secure the car, Stevens had drowned. She was later found dead. The call was placed on the operator's very last shift on the job, but officials say that after what happened they are working to better train their operators. Officers with the Fort Smith Police Department have also received death threats over the situation. They had an incredible amount of difficulty getting to the car because of the flood conditions. 5.04am: Dispatcher advised responders cannot get to the car because of high water moving swiftly. All of our first responders who attempted to save Mrs. Stevens are distraught over the outcome. 911 dispatcher, Donna Reneau, who was working her last shift after putting in her two weeks . Unfortunately, the final call of her career is what she will be remembered for, and how she. Published August 31, 2019. When asked why she was leaving her position at the police department, Reneau said she wanted to return to school. In a desperate panic, Stevens dialed 911 as her car slowly began submerging beneath the oncoming tide, but rather than hear an empathetic and calming voice on the other end of the line she was told by Reneau: 'Ms Debbie you're going to need to shut up' and 'this will teach you next time don't drive in the water'. 'To know you have helped someone that needed it gives you a great feeling. called 911 on his parents for making him eat a salad. The first crews arrived on the scene about ten minutes later but had difficulty identifying Stevens exact location due to the high waters. JAMIE MITCHELL/AP. Ralph R. Ortega For Dailymail.com FORT SMITH, Ark. She's a former 911 dispatcher who used to save lives with her calls daily. 'Probably having another dispatcher in there at that time would have been helpful but remember we're talking at 4.30 in the morning so getting folks down there to assist with dispatch would have been difficult', Baker said. She makes me sick. Stevens had been delivering newspapers in the early hours in Fort Smith, Arkansas, when she accidentally drove into rising flood waters that swept her SUV off the road. So calm down.'. Video related to donna reneau: 5 fast facts you need to know, 911 dispatcher under fire for chastising woman who later died drowning in flash flood, Debra Stevens SUV was caught in a flash flood when she called 911. He said this emphasizes the need for more telecommunication training. I know the water level is high but you freaking out is doing nothing but losing your oxygen so calm down,' Reneau said in the audio. Is there maybe things we need to look at in our response? 'Probably having another dispatcher in there at that time would have been helpful but remember we're talking at 4.30 in the morning so getting folks down there to assist with dispatch would have been difficult', Baker said. Reneau does not face any criminal charges in Stevens' death. 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