911: To Call or Not to Call, That is the Question
Your first stop in the Homeland Security Enterprise
In our first story, (linked here) I wrote about the difficult job our emergency dispatchers do every day and night.
Since a call to ‘911’ or your non-emergency dispatch number is frequently the first thing people do during a crisis, let’s continue with the dispatch theme. One of the things people have asked me most frequently in my career is when it is appropriate to call 911. Obviously, 911 should be reserved for emergency calls, but there are many times when you might think you should call for the police, fire department, or an ambulance, but aren’t quite sure if the situation is an “emergency”. For those cases, keep your local police department’s non-emergency dispatch number handy. Here in Santa Rosa, CA it is (707) 528–5222. You’ll have to check for your hometown agency’s number. It is a great number to keep near your home phone and programmed into your cell phone. Both 911 and the non-emergency numbers are recorded lines, and both get you in touch with the same dispatchers who can send the police, fire, or emergency medical services to your aid.
As for when to call, there are so many situations where it is appropriate to call that it might be easier to list a few of the times when maybe people shouldn’t have called 911. I can remember hearing a few calls dispatched that made me do a double take and ask, “Wait, what?” Here are a few of those calls. If any of these, or similar things are the issue maybe 911 isn’t the best number to call. Also, check out the videos at the end of the story for even sillier examples from around the country:
· “My child won’t get out of bed and go to school.”
· “The smoke from my neighbor’s grill is coming in my windows and annoying me.”
· “The deer are eating my flowers.”
· “Why is the helicopter flying over my neighborhood?”
· “I just saw a police car with it’s lights and siren on. What’s going on?”
· “What time is it?”
· “I don’t have an emergency, but don’t know what number to call.”
· “Did we just have an earthquake?”
For those times when you do need emergency help, here are a few tips.
· Press 9, then 1, and then 1 again: I know that sounds silly, but trust me. Even simple things are difficult under extreme stress.
· Remain calm: This is far easier to say than do, but the dispatchers will help guide you through the emergency.
· Know the location of the emergency and where you are: This is critically important, and may require you to work on your situational awareness, which we will cover in an upcoming post about how to stay safe and be a better witness. If you don’t know where you are, it’s ok. The dispatchers are trained to figure that out and have a lot of ways to get your location. We will find you.
· Listen, and answer the dispatcher’s questions: The dispatcher will guide the conversation and ask questions that may frustrate you. Help may already be on the way, and the responding officers need to get information quickly while they are on the way.
· Follow the dispatcher’s directions and don’t hang up until they tell you to: See above.
· Observe your surroundings: Keep your eyes and ears open when safe so you can help emergency responders with descriptions of the scene, suspects, vehicles, etc.
That’s all for now. Thanks for reading and we’ll reach out again soon. Like I said, let us know what you’d like to see here. We’re happy to serve. The videos I promised are linked below. The first one is longer, but pretty funny. The second features one of the better calls from the first video, but is shorter for those with less time.
Captain Craig Schwartz
P.S. Don’t bother putting 911 into the auto dialer in your cell phone. You’re not likely to forget the number but you increase the chances of butt-dialing us.
