The deaths of three Pittsburgh police officers as they arrived at a domestic dispute April 4 has been cause for all emergency dispatch centers to review their operations and re-emphasize mandatory procedures.

That's the right action. The deaths in Pittsburgh might have been averted if the procedure for relaying vital information to the officers responding to the dispute hadn't been botched by the call-taker.

The call-taker misled the dispatcher into thinking no guns were in the house reporting the domestic disturbance, even though she had been told that weapons were in the residence. Thus, the dispatcher didn't tell the responding police that, although there were no weapons involved in the dispute, guns were nonetheless present.

In an article in last Sunday's edition of the Butler Eagle, Frank Matis, Butler County emergency services director, discussed the training process for this county's emergency operators. His explanation of the process should be a source of confidence not only for police officers but for the public.

For example, the requirement that all Butler County 911 dispatchers have experience in the emergency services field gives dispatchers the kind of perspective that is necessary in handling calls, some of which are in the life-or-death category.

According to Matis, the entire training process encompasses between 600 and 800 hours, or approximately two years.

The emergency services director said 911 workers are trained not only to get emergency help to the scene, but also to check periodically on the welfare of those dispatched. He said a warning timer alerts the dispatcher at about 5-minute intervals.

That is not to imply that errors will never occur. No one ever can promise that. But the possibility of errors occurring can be greatly minimized, and that is the ongoing focus of the local 911 operation.

Matis' description of the various aspects of the training that local dispatchers receive provides clear evidence that this county's 911 center strives to be the best on a level of excellence that often is identified with larger metropolitan areas.

It was a domestic-dispute call that proved fatal to the three Pittsburgh police officers, and police in this country are well aware of the danger associated with such calls.

Meanwhile, according to last Sunday's article, FBI statistics reveal that 50 police officers were killed in this country from 1998 through 2007 while responding to domestic disturbances. And, of all officers who were assaulted in 2007, 31.7 percent about 19,000 were attacked while responding to disturbance calls.

"Domestic calls are one of the potentially most-dangerous calls we assist on," said Sgt. David Kovach of the Cranberry Township Police Department.

Kovach provided an apt description by referring to the 911 dispatchers as police officers' "guardian angels."

The process of reviewing all that went wrong in Pittsburgh will no doubt be an ongoing task for 911 authorities and other officials there.

Robert A. Full, Allegheny County's chief of emergency services, has admitted that "there was human error."

"There is no excuse," Full said. "It could have been handled better, without a doubt."

At the time of the April 4 incident, the 911 call-taker involved had been on the job for less than a year, including training. But the limited experience can never be an excuse for what happened.

For whatever reason, the call-taker never relayed any information about weapons being in the house to the dispatcher who sent police to the scene. For Pittsburgh police, it had to be a source of great frustration that this tragic situation could have been avoided, if things were handled properly at all levels.

What happened in Pittsburgh is a reminder to everyone working in such crucial positions that there is no margin for error or lapses in judgment. All aspects of the training they receive are important and relevant.

Pittsburgh is coping with the realization that something so tragic could occur despite extensive training. As Full described it, "We are all living this now forever and ever."

A similar situation must never be allowed to occur in Butler County.