# Ask the 9-1-1 Operator... **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [February 11, 2013, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-9-1-1-operator/649983 "2013-02-11T16:10:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Sicks\_Ate](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/258eb7/32.png) [@Sicks\_Ate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sicks_Ate)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2013, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-9-1-1-operator/649983/21 "2013-02-11T18:27:26Z")
> [@Nawth\_Chucka](#): > > What resources do you have available to you? > Late one Saturday night, a car went off an exit ramp from the freeway a quarter mile ahead of us too fast, running down the exit sign and nosing into a ditch. I called 911 as my husband pulled up the ramp and got out to check on the driver. As I gave the plate # to the operator (who pinpointed my location though I was calling from an out-of-town cell), my husband was telling the conscious but clearly drunk driver that help was on the way. Driver freaks out, saying, “Man, don’t call the law!” and proceeds to lurch his car out of the ditch, dragging pieces of the undercarriage and takes off up the exit. > I’m telling the dispatcher what I can see going on when my husband comes back. She asks, is the driver a young white male w/ a shaved head? My husband says, yes he is; the dispatcher had the driver license picture in front of her. She assured us the police would meet the man at his home in just a minute or two and we drove off. > She had access to GPS, the DMV and Licensing at least, I assume. I know I’ve seen other dispatchers around here, though I can’t remember who they are. From my experience, I can assure that a GOOD dispatcher can do exactly this. ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2013, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-9-1-1-operator/649983/22 "2013-02-11T18:32:49Z")
My 911 calls have been handled great, no complaints. On the calls I often hear on the news, however, the operators seem very resistant to tell the caller that help has been dispatched. The caller, therefore, can’t calm down enough to be helpful. Is there some reason not to say something like “the police are on their way, please stay on the line as I need more information?” ---
**Author:** ![Iggy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iggy/32/3364_2.png) [@Iggy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Iggy)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2013, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-9-1-1-operator/649983/23 "2013-02-11T18:36:54Z")
> [@eclectic\_wench](#): > > It has to be very weird, getting these tiny glimpses into people’s lives at some of their scariest moments… Has any call left you with an unsolved mystery that you still wonder about? > > And thanks for the thread. What I do is so utterly nonessential to basic survival that I’m fascinated and awed by people who do life-and-death jobs. While not exactly playing the role of the priest-confessor, we are told things that are clearly private, particularly medical information or information about domestic abuse. I may even know the person or know of them (ie friend-of-a-friend, or local celebrity) but the exact details stay private. We use the information to do our jobs and then tend to forget about it… until the next time the same person calls about the same issue. There are times we get calls and have no idea about the outcome of the inquiry. Whether it is medical (did the CPR patient survive?) or a police matter we accept that often we will not know the outcome. As to unsolved mystery, almost work related… A few years ago I was on my way home from work when I came upon a boatload of Cuban refugees coming to shore. One police officer was already on scene but she does not speak Spanish. I do. I spoke to all of the people on this tiny rickety boat and got their names and contact phone numbers for family members or friends in the US. I went home and made calls to let their loved ones know that they made it this far safely and what their circumstances were. I still have that list of phone numbers but have never called back to see if they made it safely to their destination. For work I have spoken to people on several such Cuban boats. No idea if any of them made it or were lost at sea. ---
**Author:** ![Iggy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iggy/32/3364_2.png) [@Iggy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Iggy)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2013, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-9-1-1-operator/649983/24 "2013-02-11T18:40:26Z")
> [@yoyodyne](#): > > Have you ever had a call from someone having a stroke who couldn’t be understood? I had a very memorable call along those lines. I could understand “yes” or “no” and not much else. I had the cell phone number that was used to place the call. And that’s all. :eek: We had to use database searches to find an address as I simply could not understand what the caller was telling me. I found out later that the caller had previously had a stroke and that was not what was being reported at the time. ---
**Author:** ![Malacandra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Malacandra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malacandra)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2013, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-9-1-1-operator/649983/25 "2013-02-11T18:42:28Z")
How big should a fire be before you need to call the emergency services? (Need answer fast.) ---
**Author:** ![Iggy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iggy/32/3364_2.png) [@Iggy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Iggy)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2013, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-9-1-1-operator/649983/26 "2013-02-11T19:00:00Z")
> [@Nawth\_Chucka](#): > > What resources do you have available to you? > … > She had access to GPS, the DMV and Licensing at least, I assume. We have access to the driver’s license database\* complete with dl photos. This database is one of our primary tools. We frequently have police meet a drunk driver at his home. We have access to other databases (our own for prior 9-1-1 calls, or police database, e.g.) that can aid in call processing. As to GPS of cell phone callers… this is a great topic. Many 9-1-1 centers have the ability to get location information automatically. For calls placed from a landline it is fairly easy. Your phone number is transmitted when you place the call (think caller-id) and our system simply looks that up that number in a database. The address then shows up on my computer screen Aha! Phone number 312-555-1234 is installed at 15 Main St, Little City. So long as the database is up to date that works fine. But if you move and keep your old phone number then I see an incorrect address until the database is updated (usually monthly). For calls from cell phones it is a bit more difficult. First, suppose you are on the highway within a major city but the nearest cell tower that your phone locks onto is in a suburb with a different 9-1-1 center? Your call first gets routed to the suburban call center which then needs to transfer the call to the appropriate jurisdiction. Now that you are connected to the right 9-1-1 center (called a PSAP, for Public Safety Answering Point), there _might_\*\* be more detailed location information available. Or not. That location information could come from GPS location of your cell phone, or from triangulation of your phone on the cell network. Automated cell phone location might give a location to within 50 meters - great for a wreck on a major highway, but not specific enough to know which house in an urban neighborhood the domestic violence call is coming from. \*I don’t work in the United States, so my driver’s license database is only for the country where I work. I am not sure exactly what driver’s license database information a 9-1-1 operator would have for a car or driver from a different state/province. \*\* My PSAP does not get any automatic location information from cell phone calls. None. If you don’t/can’t tell me where the incident is, then I don’t know for sure. ---
**Author:** ![Iggy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iggy/32/3364_2.png) [@Iggy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Iggy)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2013, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-9-1-1-operator/649983/27 "2013-02-11T19:09:48Z")
> [@Malacandra](#): > > How big should a fire be before you need to call the emergency services? (Need answer fast.) If you have to ask, dial 9-1-1. For fires, the basic guidance to dispatch quickly and gather other details while the fire unit is on the way to the call. Fires tend not to get smaller on their own. We’ll then want to know: what is burning (car, brush, building, boat, other?), persons trapped (humans take priority) other exposures (brush fire within 20 feet of detached garage) hazards (cylinder of acetylene welding gas in the garage!) best approach (house is Elm St address but best accessed through driveway at 34 Sycamore Drive) and other details depending upon call. ---
**Author:** ![Iggy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iggy/32/3364_2.png) [@Iggy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Iggy)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2013, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-9-1-1-operator/649983/28 "2013-02-11T19:19:12Z")
> [@Procrustus](#): > > My 911 calls have been handled great, no complaints. On the calls I often hear on the news, however, the operators seem very resistant to tell the caller that help has been dispatched. The caller, therefore, can’t calm down enough to be helpful. Is there some reason not to say something like “the police are on their way, please stay on the line as I need more information?” One mantra of training is, “Do not over-promise.” Many larger 9-1-1 centers separate the functions of call taker and dispatcher. While you speak to the call taker, they gather the information to pass it on to the dispatcher. Usually this is done using a [Computer Aided Dispatch](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Computer-aided_dispatch) program. So the person you are talking to may not be the person who is dispatching the police/fire service/ambulance. Until the call taker sees a unit assigned to the call and marked in responding status the call taker simply will not tell a caller that police are on the way. They might tell the call that “police will be there as soon as possible” or words to that effect. Similarly, I would never promise how soon a responding unit will arrive. I might say “the ambulance is coming from their station on highway 12 next to the Wal-mart” but I would not say “they will be there in 3 minutes” It is rare, but responders are diverted to higher priority incidents or, worse I have had responders end up in a car wreck or have their vehicle break down on the way to a call. ---
**Author:** ![Nawth\_Chucka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c57346/32.png) [@Nawth\_Chucka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nawth_Chucka)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2013, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-9-1-1-operator/649983/29 "2013-02-11T21:08:47Z")
How will a caller know when they’ve given the operator enough information? Should we wait (depending on our personal safety) until the operator tells us it’s ok to hang up? ---
**Author:** ![Iggy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iggy/32/3364_2.png) [@Iggy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Iggy)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2013, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-9-1-1-operator/649983/30 "2013-02-11T21:33:54Z")
> [@Nawth\_Chucka](#): > > How will a caller know when they’ve given the operator enough information? Should we wait (depending on our personal safety) until the operator tells us it’s ok to hang up? Please stay on the line until the operator tells you it is ok to hang up. For certain types of in-progress evolving emergencies we tend to keep callers on the line until the responding unit confirms they have arrived and made contact. Even if it is not safe for the caller to talk we might want you to keep an open line if possible to do so safely. That allows me to hear background noises. I might be able to hear the responding police officers over the phone and know they are close. For less critical matters I usually wrap up calls with some variant of “You can hang up now. If the situation changes before help arrives then call us right back.” ---
**Author:** ![OldGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/3bc359/32.png) [@OldGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OldGuy)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2013, 10:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-9-1-1-operator/649983/31 "2013-02-11T22:21:15Z")
> [@Iggy](#): > > Just because something is a police matter does not mean it is a 9-1-1 emergency. > > Arrive home from work and see your place has been burglarized. You check inside to be sure no suspect is still there. Not an emergency. Uhh no thank you. If I arrive home from work and my place has obviously been burglarized, I’m calling 9-1-1 and not going inside at all to check and see if the suspect is there. Isn’t that the proper procedure? ---
**Author:** ![Iggy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iggy/32/3364_2.png) [@Iggy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Iggy)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2013, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-9-1-1-operator/649983/32 "2013-02-11T23:02:20Z")
> [@OldGuy](#): > > Uhh no thank you. If I arrive home from work and my place has obviously been burglarized, I’m calling 9-1-1 and not going inside at all to check and see if the suspect is there. Isn’t that the proper procedure? If you haven’t been inside or checked to see if a suspect is still there, then call 9-1-1! There _could_ be a suspect there. If you see a strange vehicle outside you house in such circumstances then by all means call 9-1-1! If you see a suspicious person in the area when this happens then please dial 9-1-1 and give a description. But to the contrary, if you arrive home and see the house is in shambles; take time to search the house and determine no one is there; make a complete inventory of what is missing; make a call to your insurance company to start the claim; feed and walk the dog; and then pick up the phone to call to report the matter… please dial the non-emergency number. Incidents that are in progress or have just occurred warrant calling 9-1-1. If you are not sure, call 9-1-1. But if you reasonably know that the matter is long since over and there is no ongoing imminent threat to your safety or property then call the non-emergency number to the police station to make a report. Caller: I just got home. It looks like someone has kicked in my door. I haven’t been inside and don’t know if someone is in there. = Dial 9-1-1! Caller: Four days ago when I got home I found my door kicked in and found someone stole my tv. = Police matter. Dial non-emergency line to report. How long is too long for an incident to no longer be considered “just occurred” is a judgement call. ---
**Author:** ![Battle\_Pope](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4bbf92/32.png) [@Battle\_Pope](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Battle_Pope)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2013, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-9-1-1-operator/649983/33 "2013-02-12T00:25:52Z")
Do you get many ‘frequent flyers’? People who seem to call 911 so often that they become known to the operators. ---
**Author:** ![Iggy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iggy/32/3364_2.png) [@Iggy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Iggy)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2013, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-9-1-1-operator/649983/34 "2013-02-12T01:26:29Z")
> [@Battle\_Pope](#): > > Do you get many ‘frequent flyers’? People who seem to call 911 so often that they become known to the operators. The term “frequent flyer” seems to have come from the medical side of things but there are definitely people who qualify who frequently call for police matters as well. We recognize several callers by voice alone or perhaps by their phone number. We get to know their most frequent issues and particularly pay attention to anything out of the ordinary for them. Some have mental illness issues and they are acting on their delusions. If they are reporting something unusual for them then it is more likely to be real. (If the paranoid schizophrenic whose normal call is to report spies hiding in his bushes suddenly calls to report his neighbor’s house is on fire then you better take him seriously!) Some have more traditional physical medical problems that result in frequent calls. (Poorly controlled diabetes which does not respond easily to normal medical management.) Some frequent callers are just in a position to regularly observe certain areas and call in anything abnormal. One of our frequent callers is a taxi driver and his reports are generally quite relevant - anything from prowlers to car accidents to traffic light malfunctions, he sees and he calls. Some frequent callers seem to have difficulty resolving what would seem to be fairly minor arguments. I guess it is better to keep things from escalating but would be better if they could settle their barstool trivia contests without getting police involved. And then those who are more frequently associated with the term _frequent flyer_ - those who seem to abuse the ambulance system. This is the person who calls the ambulance for any perceived medical issue, no matter how slight. To this type of caller a stuffed nose from a cold becomes “breathing difficulty” or a sleeping patient is “unconscious and unresponsive”. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2013, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-9-1-1-operator/649983/35 "2013-02-12T01:36:23Z")
Do you get many “Ambulance Taxi” calls? People who want a ride to a clinic or doctor’s appointment, but it’s not an emergency, or perhaps it’s even scheduled? Do you have a non-emergency medical or disabled transport system in your area they should be using instead? ---
**Author:** ![apollonia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/2bfe46/32.png) [@apollonia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/apollonia)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2013, 1:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-9-1-1-operator/649983/36 "2013-02-12T01:52:23Z")
What would you say is the breakdown of people who need police, people who need ambulances, and people who need the fire department? (As the base of the complaint–excluding police who accompany the fire department to control the scene, or the ambulance that comes to the call for police to assist at a robbery or whatever.) ---
**Author:** ![JackieLikesVariety](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackielikesvariety/32/296_2.png) [@JackieLikesVariety](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JackieLikesVariety)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2013, 1:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-9-1-1-operator/649983/37 "2013-02-12T01:53:52Z")
do you have a very large area to cover? what do you do when there aren’t any calls? ---
**Author:** ![Iggy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iggy/32/3364_2.png) [@Iggy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Iggy)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2013, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-9-1-1-operator/649983/38 "2013-02-12T02:05:21Z")
> [@WhyNot](#): > > Do you get many “Ambulance Taxi” calls? People who want a ride to a clinic or doctor’s appointment, but it’s not an emergency, or perhaps it’s even scheduled? > > Do you have a non-emergency medical or disabled transport system in your area they should be using instead? Our area does not have any non-emergency medical transport ambulances. And there is a need so that bedridden or similar patients can go to routine appointments and such. We very rarely have calls requesting an ambulance for transport for routine appointments for patients who are physically capable of being transported by other means. Patients (or their caregivers) normally contact the ambulance office directly to arrange such transports though we occasionally get such calls if the ambulance crew is out on a call for service. It is not a major part of our call volume. ---
**Author:** ![Iggy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iggy/32/3364_2.png) [@Iggy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Iggy)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2013, 2:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-9-1-1-operator/649983/39 "2013-02-12T02:13:41Z")
> [@apollonia](#): > > What would you say is the breakdown of people who need police, people who need ambulances, and people who need the fire department? (As the base of the complaint–excluding police who accompany the fire department to control the scene, or the ambulance that comes to the call for police to assist at a robbery or whatever.) Police are primary in probably 88% of calls. Ambulance service is primary in probably about 10.9% of calls. Fire service is primary in only about 1% of calls. Other services are primary in that 0.1% of calls. Some calls types regularly have two or more types of emergency responders involved. When multiple agencies are involved the police would normally be considered primary. So a car that crashes into a power pole knocking the pole over and trapping the driver will get police, ambulance, fire, and the power company all called out. Police would be considered primary even though the power company, fire service, and ambulance crew all need to do their thing before the police. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Bravo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_bravo/32/493_2.png) [@Johnny\_Bravo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Bravo)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2013, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-9-1-1-operator/649983/40 "2013-02-12T02:16:39Z")
About what percentage of your calls aren’t actual emergencies requiring 911? This could mean pranks, or non-emergencies that get routed elsewhere, or “frequent fliers” and so on. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-9-1-1-operator/649983.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-9-1-1-operator/649983.md?page=3)