Burau, Caroline 1973-

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Burau, Caroline 1973-

PERSONAL:

Born 1973; married; husband's name Jim; children: a stepdaughter. Education: Graduated from journalism school.

ADDRESSES:

Home—White Bear Lake, MN. Office—Police Department, Downtown White Bear Lake, 4701 Highway 61, White Bear Lake, MN 55110.

CAREER:

Author and 911 dispatch operator. Worked previously as a journalist and a secretary.

WRITINGS:

Answering 911: Life in the Hot Seat, Borealis Books (St. Paul, MN), 2006.

SIDELIGHTS:

As a rookie emergency services dispatcher in rural Minnesota, Caroline Burau began jotting down the details of notable calls as a way of handling the job's high stress. As time went on, she realized she had the makings of a book. In Answering 911: Life in the Hot Seat, Burau presents some of her most memorable experiences on the job—some traumatizing, some hilarious, some tedious, some life-changing in a positive way. Her account also includes the circuitous career path that took her to the dispatcher's office, including a short stint in nursing school and several years as a newspaper reporter. Marco Eagle contributor Terri Schlichenmeyer remarked that the memoir "pulls the tarp off a job that usually goes unnoticed, and exposes it with black humor, chaos and a healthy dose of compassion." John Marshall noted in a review for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer that Answering 911 "sheds overdue light on a crucial profession too long in the shadows."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Saint Paul Pioneer Press, August 13, 2006, Mary Bauer, "Dispatcher Writes about Life on the Line," review of Answering 911: Life in the Hot Seat.

Seattle Post-Intelligencer, November 17, 2006, John Marshall, "Memoir Brings to Light the Unseen World of 911 Operators," review of Answering 911.