MARTIN COUNTY, Fla. — They’re the unsung heroes of every emergency. The steady voice in the storm, the first point of contact when every second counts, and when violent tornadoes ripped across the Treasure Coast during Hurricane Milton last October, Brittany Hanton did not flinch.
"I've been doing it for so long, but that was intense. That was probably the most, I'd say, intense thing that we've been through," said Hanton.
The Martin County Sheriff’s Office 911 supervisor is nominated for Telecommunicator of the Year across the State of Florida—after guiding her team through one of the most chaotic emergency responses the region has seen.
"We started getting high winds. We started getting reports of tornadoes, multiple 911, lines were ringing, saying that they spotted tornadoes on I-95 on the Turnpike," said Hanton. "Those 911 lines started ringing pretty frantically, and people were frantic. People were stopping on the highways. They were just scared. "
While callers cried out for help—some trapped, others fearing for their lives—Hanton triaged each emergency in real time, calmly directing resources to the people who needed them most.
She credits her team for their ability to respond.
"I have lots of coworkers who also are used to high stress. That's part of our job," said Hanton. "I was on main radio, so they were letting me know, hey, this one we need to go to first. Obviously, everyone is a priority, but those that were trapped underneath the rubble we needed to get to ASAP."
At one point during the storm, Hanton and her team heard something over the radio they’ll never forget.
“The sheriff was out riding around, and he keyed up over the main radio and said, ‘There’s a tornado at Cove Road,’” Hanton recalled. “You could hear the stress in his voice when he added, ‘It’s coming right at me.’ And then—radio silence.”
In a storm like this, silence wasn’t normal.
“Typically, in high-stress situations, the radio is nonstop. But at that moment, the entire agency just froze,” Hanton said. “All the deputies out on the road, everyone just kind of stopped. We were all waiting to hear the sheriff say he was OK.”
As dispatchers kept the system running and coordinated response efforts, patrol units began checking in, one by one.
“Units were keying up asking, ‘Does anyone have eyes on the sheriff?’” Hanton said. “And then he finally came back on and said, ‘I’m OK.’ We all took a deep breath—then went right back to answering the hundreds of 911 calls coming in.”
For Hanton, it was a powerful moment—a reminder of what was at stake, and just how crucial every voice on the line was that day.
"The teamwork that was experienced that day, it was absolutely one of the best, also chaotic scenes and incidents that I've ever dealt with in that 22 years," said Hanton.
One call has also stayed with her— a desperate caller from Mariner Sands, where a tornado wreaked havoc.
“My house collapsed,” the woman cried.
“Okay, all right, we’re gonna get help on the way,” the dispatcher responded.
“Okay, please!" she responded.
The caller had just watched her home collapse around her. Her husband was still inside.
"Is he inside?” the dispatcher asks in the 911 call.
“I don’t—I hope so!” she responded.
“I remember that call,” Hanton said. “She couldn’t see him. She didn’t know if he was alive. She didn’t know where he was. She just knew where he had been when the house came down. And we were able to get responders to him.”
The tornado that hit Martin County that day was rated EF-2 and was one of seven that touched down across the region. It flattened homes, downed power lines and left a path of destruction that stretched for miles.
Through it all, Hanton’s team stayed on the line with caller after caller—offering calm, clear guidance in the middle of the chaos.
"In that moment, it was just inspirational to see all of the training and all of the hard work that goes into the job that we do, just go in full effect," said Hanton.
Yet it wasn't just Martin County dispatchers that stepped up to the plate October 9.
In Indian River County, Vero Beach dispatchers faced an onslaught, with lines ringing off the hook, giving dispatchers no time to breathe.
“I got 911 ringing off the wall—we need more people in here!” yelled one dispatcher in the middle of the storm.
And still—they walked families through rising floodwaters.
“We’re starting to flood out, water’s coming in at every direction—we’ll die if we stay here. It’s getting worse and worse," cried one family in a 911 call obtained by WPTV.
“Okay, are you able to get to higher ground?” the dispatcher calmly asked before guiding them to safety.
They stayed on the line—even as tornadoes beared down on their own building.
“We’re in the bathroom, so yeah, I think there’s another one coming right now!” cried a caller.
“Oh my—yeah, I can see it! I can see it! I can see it. We had two touch down here at the police station!” replied the dispatcher.
“In a time that a tornado is passing by, they received thousands of phone calls in such a short amount of time," said Indian River County Sheriff, Eric Flowers. “You’re reliant upon the people you’re giving the message to, to help, and so that’s a stressful job. And the dispatchers did an amazing job at making sure our community was safe.”
In St. Lucie County, where the deadliest tornado of the day tore lives apart, dispatchers stayed steady—absorbing every trauma, every ounce of heartache. They often do so without closure, moving from one crisis to the next.
“I’m trying to find a possible victim for the Spanish Lakes tornado—I’ve called the hospital, I don’t know what else to do," said one 911 caller.
“I’m trying to find out some information regarding my sister—been receiving calls she passed away," said another.
“I think we had a whole day’s worth of calls during Milton in a two-hour period," said Fire Chief Jeff Lee. "So you can’t—can’t imagine how busy the telecommunicators are trying to answer those calls.”
"When you look at the magnitude of the event, and the possibility that it could have been more. I’m thankful for our team here at the Emergency Operations Center that was able to quickly act to ensure we responded quicker," added Public Safety Director, Ron Guerrero.
They heard every cry for help, every moment of desperation and they kept going—so others could live.
Without dispatchers, help never arrives.
“We do make a difference. We serve. We protect," said Hanton. "The difference between life and death—and I just want the public to know—we always have your back. When you call in, we always have your back."
