17-year-old girl volunteers as dispatcher for western North Carolina police department

AVERY COUNTY, N.C. (WGHP) — The Banner Elk Police Chief says his officers are stretched thin as they help Hurricane Helene victims in Avery County.

A 17-year-old girl has stepped up to assist officers by making sure everyone in the community is accounted for.

Lily Flores is volunteering as a dispatcher for the Banner Elk Police Department.

“I was ready and willing to do whatever it took to help out the community, especially with communication down. They found a spot for me and I started dispatching and I really enjoyed it, especially the rush of it all,” Flores said.

The hurricane caused the Banner Elk Police Department to flood so they transferred their operations to town hall, where Flores was trained to help police officers do wellness checks on every person in the town.

“I had a very fun time figuring out all the codes and what meant what. They would tell me the address and tell me whether somebody lived there or someone suspected there or any animals there or if they needed help,” Flores said.

Besides dispatching, the 17-year-old also answered distress calls from locals who didn’t know where their loved ones were.

“There was a woman there who hadn’t been in contact with her family members and she had pets. And a family member called town hall and was like, ‘Hey, I haven’t heard from her. I need to get in contact. I’m not sure if she’s safe and she needs food and water,'” Flores said. “I found somebody who was open and didn’t have anything to do at the moment and we filled their car with stuff to provide and made sure they’re OK and we sent them down the road to make sure she was OK.”

Flores says she plans to continue volunteering at the Banner Elk Town Hall until everyone in her community is accounted for.

“There’s definitely a lot of people that haven’t been found. There’s teachers at the high school, family members, and it’s just kind of that stuff is out of my control but I did what I could and feel good as a person in the community that I did my job and that I helped.”

If you’re interested in becoming a volunteer dispatcher for the Banner Elk Police Department, contact their town hall at (828) 898-5398.

You can also help to feed Avery County families through Feeding Avery Families and Build Back Avery .

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