SAN FRANCISCO — San Francisco’s 911 dispatchers are warning city officials about current staffing levels, even after the Department of Emergency Management backed off plans to mobilize dispatchers next month’s APEC summit.
911 call centers across the country are understaffed and struggling to fill vacancies, leading to burnout and delays in answering emergency calls.
ALSO READ: Businesses near APEC Summit in San Francisco say security protocols present challenges
For the last 16 years, Burt Wilson has been the calming voice on the other end of the line, helping San Franciscans navigate the worst days of their lives.
Advertisement
“Taking a call from somebody saying they’re having a heart attack and getting services like the paramedics to them at the right time in order to save their life, I think it’s very gratifying,” Wilson said.
On busy days, Wilson fields up to 20 calls an hour, all while having to stay cool and collected.
ALSO READ: APEC in San Francisco to cause major street and transit impacts
Wilson, who serves as the president of the union representing San Francisco’s 911 dispatchers, is sounding the alarm. He says the very people tasked with helping residents in a crisis are in a crisis of their own.
“The phone constantly rings off the hook,” he said.
Advertisement
Longtime staffing shortages at San Francisco’s 911 center, he said, have resulted in burnout, fatigue and, worse, a chronic failure to meet the answering standard — 95% of calls getting picked up within 15 seconds.
“A lot of people don’t realize how bad it is until you have to call 911 and you can’t get through the phone. And when seconds matter, you see how critical it is,” Wilson added.
ALSO READ: San Francisco locals unsure if city is ready to host APEC
Earlier this month, tensions between dispatchers and the San Francisco Department of Emergency Management reached a boiling point after the city announced plans to mobilize dispatchers for the first time in 15 years ahead of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation summit known as APEC.
Mobilizing dispatchers, something that is usually reserved for unforeseen natural disaster, would mean 12-hour shifts, five days a week. Wilson says he and other dispatchers in San Francisco are already stretched to the limit.
Advertisement
The decision was eventually reversed, but 911 dispatchers argue they should be classified as public safety workers, which would grant them more benefits.
“The governor and the president of the United States has classified 911 dispatchers as first responders. All we’re asking is they give us the benefit, not just the title,” he said.
Department of Emergency Management Executive Director Mary Ellen Carroll said San Francisco’s 911 staff is down about 40% percent. But she also noted that figure is not unique to San Francisco. The department has recently hired a recruiter for the first time to try and address the problem.
“We obviously have more work to do,” she said. “However, we can’t not answer 911 calls. This is a 24/7 operation.”
San Francisco Board of Supervisors President Aaron Peskin said that while there are no plans to classify dispatchers as public safety workers, the city is looking to compensate them in other ways.
Advertisement
“It is a very difficult job. And so I am committed to ensure that they are appropriately compensated and that we hire additional staff so that they don’t have to work mandatory overtime,” he said.
Wilson said he hopes the city finds a way to fix the problem, while people’s lives are on the line.
“When seconds matter, you see how critical it is,” he said.
If you’re wondering where you should be eating in and around the San Francisco Bay Area, here are five of the most news worthy and buzzy restaurants to check out right now. From the city’s most trendy new nightlife spots atop the 21st floor of The Beacon Grand to the one of San Francisco’s most iconic seafood establishments launching a midday lunch special, to where to eat for a special night out in wine country, these are places that making waves in the San Francisco Bay Area’s dynamic food scene now.
Starlite Room
Formerly known as the historic Sir Francis Drake, Union Square’s The Beacon Grand, reopened its doors in in 2022 after a renovation which included a redesign of the iconic Starlite Room. Currently one of the most sought after, new nightlife spots downtown, Starlite’s glamorous Art Deco era-esk interiors are by San Francisco-based designer Alice Crumeyrolle.
Advertisement
When it comes to libations, The Gimlet, the Porn Star Martini, Strawberry Grasshopper and the Cable Car Redux are must haves according to Scott Baird of Trick Dog, the Mission District’s award-winning cocktail bar. He crafted a playful cocktail menu inspired by San Francisco’s iconic fog, cable cars, gold and more.
“The inspiration for the cocktail menu is classic style cocktails in a celebratory environment,” says Baird. “The idea is to have a simplified and delicious not precious experience for guests, also providing long form context with the menu so they have a visceral understanding of what is in their glass. San Francisco has always been known as a place for poets, artists and Bohemians with a wild streak and we’ve tried to embrace that with our menu.
Advertisement
In addition to the cocktail program, Michelin-award-winning chef and raw bar expert Johnny Spero, crafted a menu that celebrates San Francisco’s exceptional culinary artistry and international fare.
“The food menu at Starlite is inspired by my trips to the Bay Area and my ideal bar snacks,” says chef Spero. “Although I’ve been booze-free for 6 years, I’ve spent a lot of time in bars and don’t think there’s any reason you can’t have a little fun. Bar nuts are always a must, but fried chicken buns and grilled oysters have a place on the menu as well.”
Copra
Acclaimed chef Srijith “Sri” Gopinathan’s Copra is hands down one of San Francisco’s most beautiful restaurants complete with a wooden greenhouse with macrame, floor-to-ceiling shelves with local artisanal, hand-woven chandeliers and a slew of unique design elements creating a chic, sexy environment. Named after the dried coconut kernel used to extract coconut oil, Copra pays homage to the coastal cuisines of India’s southern states: Kerala where Gopinathan was born, as well as, Tamil Nadu where he grew up. From fresh local Indian spices to fresh heirloom seasonal ingredients from Northern California, the restaurant offers inspired brunch and dinner menus.
The restaurant offers flavor-driven, bold dishes such as the Shrimp Vennai Roast, cooked in chili chutney, brown butter, curry leaves, and lime and the Thattukada Fried Chicken, a classic street food from Trivandrum. On the larger plates, diners will can enjoy coastal dishes like the Black Cod Pollichathu, in which the fish is encrusted in a shallot coating before being wrapped in banana leaves and cooked on cast iron and a Varuval Spice-Crusted Hamachi Collar, simmered in a rich gravy and served with snow peas and coconut rice. Don’t miss out on sharable dishes like the vegetable of the day with three homestyle vegetarian recipes or the chutney pallete for the table which is served with pappadom.
Farmhouse
The beautiful Russian River property Farmhouse Inn’s upscale restaurant helmed by husband-and-wife duo, Executive Chef Craig Wilmer and Executive Pastry Chef Amanda Hoang’s is celebrating its one-year anniversary of guiding the culinary team at Farmhouse Inn & Restaurant. Using ingredients straight from property owner’s Joe and Catherine Bartolomei’s ranch or discovered by the chef on his daily farm stops en route to the inn, the cuisine is seasonal and ever-changing.
The property celebrated this milestone with a special eight course anniversary menu that featured hen egg spaghetti, crispy aromatic squab and more. With over 33 distinctive tasting menus created this year alone, each dish payed homage to the chefs’ Hispanic and Asian heritage, while also reflecting international cooking techniques refined during travels in South America and Southeast Asia.
Advertisement
Going forward, the property will be offering Chef’s Seasonal Tasting Menu consisting of specially curated courses along with some additional bites from the chef and changes both weekly and seasonally. For those looking for an abbreviated experience, they can enjoy the Vignette Tasting Menu which is composed of the chefs’ favorite vignettes of the Full Tasting Experience.
Expect dishes that highlight ingredients such as Masami striploin, Mt. Lassen Trout and white asparagus, caviar topped peas and other inventive interpretations of fresh produce, meats and fish sourced from Sonoma County and its surrounding areas.
Scoma’s
San Francisco’s beloved Scoma’s restaurant located at Fisherman’s Wharf has just unveiled it new two-course prix-fixe lunch from Monday-Friday. The menu offers three choices for each course and features some of their most classic dishes including the Clam Chowder (they sell over 40,000 servings a year), the Petite Crab Louie (on the menu since day one), as well some modern favorites like the Gulf Shrimp Mezzi Rigatoni with gremolata or True Cod with wild mushroom spaetzle and green garlic. The full menu can be found here.
Advertisement
Don’t miss out on The Don, their Famous Bloody Mary topped with a chilled shrimp, a bacon wrapped scallop, a crab cake fritter, and two fried Castelvetrano olives. Other popular items include The Lazy Man’s Cioppino, Scoma’s original take on the classic seafood stew and the ever-popular crab cakes. When in season, fresh local Dungeness crab, petrale sole, sand dabs, and halibut are also fan favorites on the menu.
Broad Street Oyster Co.
Ghirardelli Square’s newest seafood spot, Broad Street Oyster Co., made quite a splash with their viral caviar and uni topped lobster rolls. Based out of Los Angeles, the popular seafood restaurant is known for its vibrant aesthetic and fresh seafood-centric menu that also happens to be very Instagrammable. Not to mention the views from this location include the iconic Alcatraz and Aquatic Park.
The menu offers a nice selection of dishes that include fish and chips, calamari strips, a decadent uni pasta and a raw bar selection of oysters, clams and so much more. There’s even non-seafood items if it’s not your thing, along with specials like razor clams depending on what’s in season. If you want to go all out, get the epic seafood tower pilled high with prawns, stone crab claws, lobster tail, caviar and more. The location also offers specialties that pay homage to San Francisco like our cioppino and fresh Dungeness crab.
Andrew McCutchen and the Pittsburgh Pirates hit the field on Tuesday at PNC Park against Logan Webb, who is projected to start for the San Francisco Giants. First pitch is at 6:40 PM ET.
The pitching staff for the Giants has a collective 8.3 K/9, which ranks 24th in MLB. The Pirates strike out 8.6 batters per nine innings as a pitching staff, 10th-best in MLB.
Get ready for the Giants vs. Pirates with what you need to know ahead of Tuesday’s baseball action, including viewing options.
Giants vs. Pirates: live stream info, TV channel & game time
Game Day: Tuesday, May 21, 2024
Game Time: 6:40 PM ET
Location: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Stadium: PNC Park
TV Channel: SportsNet Pittsburgh
Live Stream: Fubo (Watch for free)
Watch the MLB on Fubo!
Giants vs. Pirates odds & betting lines
Favorite: Giants (-135, bet $135 to win $100)
Underdog: Pirates (+114, bet $100 to win $114)
Over/under: 8
MLB odds courtesy of BetMGM Sportsbook. Odds updated Tuesday at 3:06 AM ET. For a full list of sports betting odds, access USA TODAY Sports Betting Scores Odds Hub.
Gannett may earn revenue from sports betting operators for audience referrals to betting services. Sports betting operators have no influence over nor are any such revenues in any way dependent on or linked to the newsrooms or news coverage. Terms apply, see operator site for Terms and Conditions. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, help is available. Call the National Council on Problem Gambling 24/7 at 1-800-GAMBLER (NJ, OH), 1-800-522-4700 (CO), 1-800-BETS-OFF (IA), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN). Must be 21 or older to gamble. Sports betting and gambling are not legal in all locations. Be sure to comply with laws applicable where you reside.
We occasionally recommend interesting products and services. If you make a purchase by clicking one of the links, we may earn an affiliate fee. FTW operates independently, though, and this doesn’t influence our coverage.