Calling 911:

What to Expect

Calls on 911 are answered: “Police, Fire, Ambulance.” Though it may be difficult, try to remain calm. Immediately identify which emergency service you require. If your situation requires more than one emergency agency, advise the call taker what the situation is.

If your call requires the Chatham-Kent Fire Department response, the call taker who answers your 911 call will take your information. As best as you are able, try to remain calm and try to answer the questions put to you by the call taker.

Most times units are already dispatched and on the way to the scene while additional questions are being asked.

When to Use It

The 911 emergency number often becomes a person’s lifeline for urgent assistance. 911 should also be used in situations where firefighting apparatus is required.

Enhanced 911

Your call to 911 will normally automatically display your name, phone number, and address on a computer in front of the call taker. In most cases you will still be asked this information to confirm that the computer display is accurate. Also, there are times that the address where emergency response is required will be different from the address you are calling from. If, for a variety of reasons, the call you make gets disconnected prior to the information being displayed on computer screens, the name, address and phone number information may still be obtained by tracing the call through the Bell Canada 911 Control Centre in Toronto.

Calling 911 in Error

There will be times when you may accidentally dial into 911. It is important that you remain on the line and let the call taker know that you dialled in error. Should you hang up without saying anything, 911 personnel have the capability of ringing your phone back immediately. Failure to pick up the line or continually hanging it up will result in officers being dispatched to your residence to check on the well being of all present.

Misuse of 911 In addition to risking the safety of people who may need emergency assistance, the deliberate misuse of 911 is a criminal offence that is punishable by fines and/or imprisonment. As mentioned earlier, all 911 calls are taped and the location where they originate is readily identifiable. Persons caught making nuisance calls or reporting fake incidents are subject to persecution.