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General
Tips
Seconds count in an emergency! When police, fire or medical emergencies occur,
9-1-1 can save precious time. It can mean saving a home, property or even a life.
If you need immediate help from law enforcement, fire personnel and/or emergency
medical services,
9-1-1 is the most important number to know and use. Here are
some general tips for
using 9-1-1:
• Dial 9-1-1 from somewhere SAFE. If you are calling to report a fire,
get out of the burning structure before calling.
•
Try to stay calm
•
Speak clearly
•
Give the 9-1-1 Dispatcher your location, using an address, cross streets or landmarks
•
Give the 9-1-1 Dispatcher your phone number
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Describe what type of help is needed:
o Police/Sheriff
o Fire
o EMS/Ambulance
•
Stay on the line, if safe to do so, and answer all questions.
•
Don’t hang up until the call is completed.
If you can’t speak
• Stay calm
•
Dial 9-1-1
•
Leave the phone off the hook. If safe, attempt to make some sort of noise such
as tapping the phone or clapping your hands to let the Dispatcher know there
is an emergency.
•
With Enhanced 9-1-1 from a landline phone, 9-1-1 with have your address.
•
The 9-1-1 Telecommunicator can dispatch police assistance to your address
Tips for Using a TTY to Reach 9-1-1
Persons who communicate using a TTY/TDD (Telecommunications Device for the Deaf)
have equal access to 9-1-1 services. In an emergency:
• Dial 9-1-1 and connect to TTY.
•
Tap a few TTY keys. Although this is not required, this activates the 9-1-1
Telecommunicator’s TTY immediately.
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Wait for 9-1-1 to answer.
• Type what help is needed: Police, Fire, Poison, Medical.
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9-1-1 cannot receive or reply to text messages.
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Respond to the 9-1-1 Dispatcher’s questions including your location and
phone number and name.
•
Stay at your TTY, if safe.
•
Don’t hang up until the call is completed.
Non-English Speaking Callers
9-1-1 speaks your language! When a non-English speaking caller uses 9-1-1, the
Dispatcher has the ability to add on an interpreter through the use of Language
Line, which offers translations in more than 140 languages.
A non-English speaking caller may hear a short conversation in English and some
clicking sounds as an interpreter is added to the 9-1-1 call.
Before you need
9-1-1
Keep your phone at an easy to reach level, such as an end table.
Do not program 9-1-1 into speed dial. It can be inadvertently dialed.
Post your address and phone number near each phone in your home or on the refrigerator.
Visitors, babysitters and even family members may need to relay this information
in a stressful situation.
Make sure your address is posted and easily seen from the street.
Know how to use 9-1-1 with the type of phones that you own!
Traditional, “hard-wired” landline phones
- Provide 9-1-1 with your address and phone number
- Continue to work during electrical power outages
- Will not work during telephone outages
Portable Landline Phones
- Can be carried into garage or yard
- Caller may need to press “Talk” before or after dialing 9-1-1
- Will not work during a electrical power outage
- Provide 9-1-1 with your address and phone number.
For more information about using 9-1-1 from a Cell phone or VoIP phone,
click on the links for each phone type
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