Behind the Scenes of the Storm: 9 -1 -1 Dispatch Center

Not only did the storm cause mayhem outside, but it also caused a lot of indoor traffic at the dispatch center in Missoula. 

"Monday night as the storm approached Missoula, we saw an immediate influx and increase of 911 calls coming into the 911 center reporting everything from trees on houses to trees in the road, trees on cars, power lines down, fires being caused by power lines, generally lots of hazards associated with the storm," Emergency Management Director Adriane Beck said.

Beck says with the increased demand of calls between 7 to 8pm they reached everyone they could.

"We did have reports of several people trying to call 911 and getting a busy signal, but we were able to go through by the end of the evening and return all the calls we knew that we missed," Beck said.

To open up emergency lines, Missoula Sheriff’s Department asks citizens to call the Parks and Recreation Department to help clean up fallen trees, and to call NorthWestern Energy for fallen power lines.