What happens when you call 911
The most frequent question we receive from citizens is what happens when I call 911? So to explain what happens when you call 911, we decided to explain the process and the people who help citizens during an emergency.
What is a telecommunicator? Telecommunication professionals answer the calls as they come into the call center and follow steps that ensure they get all of your information. This person asks questions to determine the who, what, where, how and why (as well as the what should/can/might be done) in a multitude of circumstances, in which the caller often mistakenly assumes that the answers are obvious. Sometimes it may seem as if they are asking for a lot of information. The Telecommunicator knows that action taken based on incomplete or inaccurate information can endanger callers, victims and the responders.
That is why he or she must make sure answers to questions are clear, complete and precise. If an answer is "far," for example, the Telecommunicator must ask: "how far?" If an altercation is at the "door," the Telecommunicator must ask: "Which door?" and "How many doors are there?" You can help by being as precise and exact as possible when providing information during a 911 call.
Once the Telecommunicator has analyzed the situation, the call is immediately routed by computer to a dispatcher for the appropriate emergency response (Police, Fire or EMS) to provide the service(s) needed.
Am I talking to my local Police Department?
No, your call is routed to the Concord Communications Department. We will determine if you need police, fire or medical assistance. If you need police or fire assistance we will handle your call. If you need medical assistance we will connect you to the Cabarrus County Sheriffs Dept and remain on the line to determine if first responders from Concord Fire Dept are also needed.
If you are calling from a cell phone your call is routed based on your current location as well as whom your local wireless carrier is. The answering telecommunicator will verify what city your event is occurring in and make sure you are speaking to the correct agency.
If I am talking to the Police Dispatcher, is an officer responding to my location?
Telecommunicators are trained to ask questions. It is the telecommunicators responsibility to gather enough information to determine how each phone call is best handled. The telecommunicator asks more questions during an incident that is in progress than a delayed call. When a telecommunicator is talking to a citizen about a crime in progress, he/she gathers preliminary information, enters it into a Computer Aided Dispatch (CAD) computer, and forwards it to be dispatched. The call is then assigned to officers who respond to the location of occurrence. The telecommunicator remains on the phone with the caller gathering information while forwarding it via the CAD system. A second telecommunicator relays all updated information to the responding officers while they are driving to the location.
Why does it take so long for an Officer to arrive when I call?
The Communications Staff works on a priority system, using answers to their questions to prioritize calls from the highest priorities to lower priorities. For example, a fight in progress or a motor vehicle accident with injuries would be assigned higher priorities than a barking dog or a theft, not in progress. Higher priority calls are dispatched before lower priority calls.
Residents who call 911 for emergency assistance can help ensure an effective response by following a few simple guidelines:Remain calm. This can be a challenge in an emergency situation, but staying calm helps you answer questions quickly and rationally, which in turn gets help to you faster.
Be patient. The dispatcher asks a series of questions that are designed to get help to you quickly. Depending on the type of call, help has already been dispatched while the dispatcher asks additional questions.
Know your address. If you’re calling from a cell phone, dispatchers may not be able to pinpoint your exact location. This is particularly critical if you are calling from an apartment complex.
Hopefully this blog has answered some of the questions you may have in relation to what happens when you dial 911.
