A Monday morning dedication of the Iberia Parish 911 Center brought out community officials, friends and family members to honor the memory of longtime former emergency communications specialist Lionel Oubre.

“We’re excited that he’s being honored,” said Theresa Theriot, Oubre’s daughter. “He spent all of his working life working toward this. It was his drive, his life’s goal.”

Oubre was a lifelong ham radio operator and served in the U.S. Air Force, where he worked in communications. Upon his discharge due to a diagnosis of muscular dystrophy, Oubre returned to Iberia Parish and was asked to serve on the Iberia Parish Communication District, overseeing all emergency communications by then Iberia Parish President Craig Romero.

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Oubre was hired by the city in 1988 and worked until his death in 2005. Family members said his goal throughout his later years was the creation of a modern emergency communication center, a role since fulfilled by the 911 dispatch center facility.

New Iberia Mayor Hilda Curry and Iberia Parish President Ernest Freyou spoke in remembrance of Oubre.

“Lionel was loved by everyone and well known in the community,” Curry said. “One thing I didn’t know about him, which was a surprise, was that his first job out of the service was working for the city, and he worked for my dad.”

Curry is a third-generation mayor of New Iberia. Her grandfather, Joe Daigre, served from 1929 to 1940. Her father, J. Allen Daigre, served as mayor from 1963 until 1988, the year Oubre was hired.

“I knew him since 1963, 1964,” Freyou said.

“A long, long time. Every time there was an emergency he was  setting up equipment and interfacing with the Sheriff’s Office.”

Located at 459 E. Main St., the emergency communication center, now the Lionel Oubre Emergency Dispatch Center, operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week receiving calls from parish residents.

Prescott Marshall, director of Iberia Parish Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness, said the modern facility is efficient thanks to the ability of the operators to direct calls to the specific services needed to respond to specific situations.

“They receive all 911 calls within the parish,” Marshall said.

“They will transfer calls for emergency medical support to Acadian Ambulance, fire calls are transferred to the correct fire department, either the New Iberia Fire Department or the parish.”

The dispatch center is equipped with a suite of computers loaded with specialized dispatching software, Marshall said.

The software records all calls and the subsequent actions taken, as well as maps, phone numbers and other information.

“If it’s a law enforcement dispatch, the operator is also a sheriff’s dispatcher,” Marshall said.

“So in addition to 911, they perform dispatches for the Sheriff’s Office.”