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911
DISPATCH |
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WHAT TO DO WHEN CALLING 911 DISPATCH
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| When
Calling 9-1-1.
Don't
assume the 911 center that answers your cell call will be
the agency closest to you. Triangulation (pinpointing the
origin point of a cell call by signal strength to local cell
towers) is relatively new and hasn't been implemented in most
areas. Only a select few locales have this technology, therefore
most emergency calls from cell phones are routed to a central
communications center. There, the nature and location of the
incident is ascertained and the 911 caller is either transferred
to the appropriate agency or the gathered data is disseminated
to the agency needing to respond. When you dial an emergency
number from a cell phone, don't blurt out a street address
and then expect the 911 operator to know which town or city
you are in. Chances are they cover a wide area and will need
to know your exact location. They will then transfer you to
the communications center best suited to help you. |
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| All
Callers - Important information needed.
Know
the address and phone number of the location you are calling
from. Though the technology exists which presents address
and phone number data immediately to the 911 operator, it
is not available in all locations. Even if the communications
center which answers your 911 call has the proper equipment,
computer or human error sometimes may cause the wrong information
to be displayed. The 911 operator is trained to confirm and
verify the phone number and address for EVERY call received.
It is vitally important you accommodate their questions, if
a dispatcher has to assume the information is correct, when
in fact it's erroneous, delays could result when emergency
vehicles respond to the wrong location. |
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| No
matter what the situation, try to remain calm.
Be sure to speak slowly and clearly.
Time
is of the essence. Every 911 operator knows that. It hampers
response when a 911 operator has to ask the caller for information
several times over because they couldn't comprehend what was
being said. Try to be as calm as possible and speak slowly
and clearly. This ensures the 911 operator has the correct
information the first time (s)he asks for it. |
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| Answer
all questions asked by the 911 operator.
Even ones that seem repetitious.
If
you get asked questions that seem redundant, you should answer
them again. Either the operator is trying to clarify something
that could be confusing or (s)he is verifying some information.
A lot of things go on in the background during an emergency
call, and none of the questions being asked or information
being obtained hasn't a purpose. It is very important that
you answer all questions to the best of your ability. Try
not to lose patience, no one is stalling or delaying emergency
response. |
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| Remain
on the line until the operator says
it is okay to hang up.
The
Norwalk Station 911 center is staffed by people who are trained
to give instructions for all types of calls- advice that saves
lives. Listen to what the operator has to say. He or she might
be able to offer medical instructions or it may be that an
officer responding to your call needs to be constantly updated
as to what's happening. It's very important that you don't
hang up until told to do so. Please try not to insist that
the 911 operator 'hurry up' or demand that the '(Sheriff,
PD, FD, EMS) get here now!' They
are going as fast as they can. Time seems to slow down during
a crisis and seconds can seem like hours. PD, FD and/or EMS
responders are doing everything they can to get to the scene
as quickly as possible. Demanding they 'get here now' will
not make them go faster. |
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