I work as a E911 operator / dispatcher, at my particular job I ahndle all 4 county 911 lines, 4 public lines for the sheriff's office, 10 frequencies for Highway patrol, Sheriffs Dept, ambulance (as well as pager), 3 Fire departments and 2 first responder groups and city mutual aid with Perryville the county seat, all by myself for 8 to 12 hours. I've not been there that long but in my short time I can tell you that a lot of people do not understand how to deal with emergencies, even basic ones, and some have no idea what 911 is there for.
These are simply helpful tips, from a E911 / Dispatcher's Point of view:
1. Know your location! this is the key to a good outcome in any emergency, your location is everything, if you don't know it, don't clearly inform the operator of it or just plain refuse to give the proper address or info requested, help may not arrive in time. Here's the keys in most places Numerics, street name, apartment number if applicable. (Many believe 911 has all locations all on thier screens, some areas do not have all the addresses programmed or the system could be down, it happens)
2. Call from a landline, if possible, and from where the emergency is orginating. A lot of counties especially do NOT have the cellular address and name systems, so if you call from the landline where the emergency is, the odds of the address info being given properly increase quite a bit, this helps if the caller is hysterical too.
3. STAY CALM!!!! I realize anybody can freak if theres gore, or a loved one is hurt, or thye are afraid but the calmer you are, and the more info you can give the better. If you can, stay calm and concise and give any info the operator asks for as accuratley as possible.
4. 911 is for Emergencies, some examples of non-emergencies would be hitting a deer, being locked out of your vehicle/home, a business refusing a refund or other transaction, etc. For things other than emergencies call the local authorities non-emergency line. Misuse of 911 can range from a misdeamenor to a felony in many states and counties. If you do not know the number to the local police station or firehouse call 411 or the operator, DO NOT CALL 911
5. Give as much information as possible. Remember the 911 operator is not there, any information you can give can help out a lot. If it's a criminal situation thingsl ike descriptions, numbers of suspects, weapons used if any etc are very helpful and could save the lives of the officers responding. If someone is injured be sure to advise them whether or not the patient is concious, breathing, bleeding, and how they were injured if you know.
Now that I've ranted a bit, I'll share some vids I have found of the stupid things people call 911 for and what they say, be safe and if you really are in need of help call 911, but don't misuse it, it's not funny its life threatening if you're occupying the operators time and a real call comes in, seconds can mean the difference between life or death.
Thanks,
Will S.
Supra owner / E911 / Dispatcher
http://youtube.com/watch?v=VPi1nBAXOkw
http://youtube.com/watch?v=1EykZnm_VgU
http://youtube.com/watch?v=sfZIo6Ej1Tc
last but not least, a 911 operator who has had enough of the bullshit calls, not saying hes right for what he did or to whom he did it but this is common an adult should be able to handle a domestic issue with a child without resorting to calling 911, if the child is not violent or threteaning then theres no excuse to call
http://youtube.com/watch?v=HB4pOuY37ZM
These are simply helpful tips, from a E911 / Dispatcher's Point of view:
1. Know your location! this is the key to a good outcome in any emergency, your location is everything, if you don't know it, don't clearly inform the operator of it or just plain refuse to give the proper address or info requested, help may not arrive in time. Here's the keys in most places Numerics, street name, apartment number if applicable. (Many believe 911 has all locations all on thier screens, some areas do not have all the addresses programmed or the system could be down, it happens)
2. Call from a landline, if possible, and from where the emergency is orginating. A lot of counties especially do NOT have the cellular address and name systems, so if you call from the landline where the emergency is, the odds of the address info being given properly increase quite a bit, this helps if the caller is hysterical too.
3. STAY CALM!!!! I realize anybody can freak if theres gore, or a loved one is hurt, or thye are afraid but the calmer you are, and the more info you can give the better. If you can, stay calm and concise and give any info the operator asks for as accuratley as possible.
4. 911 is for Emergencies, some examples of non-emergencies would be hitting a deer, being locked out of your vehicle/home, a business refusing a refund or other transaction, etc. For things other than emergencies call the local authorities non-emergency line. Misuse of 911 can range from a misdeamenor to a felony in many states and counties. If you do not know the number to the local police station or firehouse call 411 or the operator, DO NOT CALL 911
5. Give as much information as possible. Remember the 911 operator is not there, any information you can give can help out a lot. If it's a criminal situation thingsl ike descriptions, numbers of suspects, weapons used if any etc are very helpful and could save the lives of the officers responding. If someone is injured be sure to advise them whether or not the patient is concious, breathing, bleeding, and how they were injured if you know.
Now that I've ranted a bit, I'll share some vids I have found of the stupid things people call 911 for and what they say, be safe and if you really are in need of help call 911, but don't misuse it, it's not funny its life threatening if you're occupying the operators time and a real call comes in, seconds can mean the difference between life or death.
Thanks,
Will S.
Supra owner / E911 / Dispatcher
http://youtube.com/watch?v=VPi1nBAXOkw
http://youtube.com/watch?v=1EykZnm_VgU
http://youtube.com/watch?v=sfZIo6Ej1Tc
last but not least, a 911 operator who has had enough of the bullshit calls, not saying hes right for what he did or to whom he did it but this is common an adult should be able to handle a domestic issue with a child without resorting to calling 911, if the child is not violent or threteaning then theres no excuse to call
http://youtube.com/watch?v=HB4pOuY37ZM
