How often do you call 911 or similar emergency number?

[Babbylonian]

Given some recently publicized controversies caused by people calling the police for very questionable reasons, I'm curious how often members of this forum call emergency services, and why they've called in the past.

 

[Metullus]

Actually just once in 60 years. Ended with an ambulance trip to the ER. Good times...

 

[Brainster]

I have only had occasion to dial 911 once myself. I lived near a busy intersection and this crazy guy was out in the middle of the street screaming at everybody. He was a complete menace to traffic, and looked like he was high as a kite. And the cops came and almost immediately, he became a normal person. By that time, of course, there were plenty of people who had gathered around to tell the cops what he'd been doing. They didn't take him in, although they offered to call EMS.

Now the other time my phone was used to call 911 was not as fun. I had this couple next door and let's just say that they were mutually abusive to each other. So one day the wife comes over to my house, insists she needs to use the phone, calls 911, stays on long enough for the call to register, then hangs up. Of course, 911 calls back and I explain. Could they talk to the woman, just to be sure. Here, she talks to them and assures them she doesn't need help. Decides she's going to go out to a bar for a couple of hours and let the hubby cool down. Five minutes later cops ring the doorbell--just making sure she's alright. Of course, this is all pre-cellphone days and anyway the cops don't know who "she" is anyway. Long story short I tell the cops (2) that one of them can come in and check the place for a dead female. The older one laughs, I show him around the joint, they go over to the neighbors, she's not back, husband gets a little annoying and boom, he's off to jail. And of course both of them blame me for it.

 

[GlennB]

Once in my 67 years, when my mother had a stroke.

 

[erlando]

I've called 911 (or 112 as it happens to be here in Denmark) once. That was about a week ago when a man collapsed right outside my house.

I didn't actually dial 112. There's an app for that. When you press the big friendly red button a call to 112 is placed and your location is simultaneously transferred to the emergency services.

 

[Arcade22]

There's a great term for people who obsessively contact the emergency services, or more specifically law enforcement and courts: Querulant^WP

 

[SpitfireIX]

I've called more than a dozen times over the years. First time I was a teenager, when our house was on fire (no injuries to family, firefighters, or pets, thankfully, though we lost a couple of family heirlooms, and we had to live in my grandparents' house for four months).

I called several times when I was in college, including reporting that some guys were using a water-balloon slingshot to bombard passing cars from the balcony of a fraternity, that an intoxicated person had fallen off a wall behind my dorm (apparently he wasn't seriously injured), that I'd been involved in a minor traffic accident, that there was a traffic accident with injuries near my dorm, that I was having heart palpitations from an accidental overdose of asthma medication (only time I've ever ridden in an ambulance), and, finally, that the dumpster behind my apartment building was on fire (it was the Fourth of July, and one of my roommates tried to convince me to wait to call because he wanted to shoot off some illegal fireworks, but I called anyway).

Since then I've called at least twice each to report being in a minor traffic accident, report a disabled vehicle, report debris on the highway, and report a malfunctioning traffic signal.

I've also called once each for another accidental overdose (paramedics checked me out but they said I seemed okay, so I didn't go to the hospital; I take safer asthma medications now), to report a car driving erratically, and to report a broken water main.

 

[Strawberry]

Only once, to report a car on fire outside my house.

 

[Cain]

A liberal-communist friend of mine said he once stumbled across stats for who 911 serves and though he couldn't remember the exact figures, he said the numbers were the kind of thing that "brings out your inner-Republican." Apparently a tiny percentage of the underclass uses the lion's share of emergency services, which isn't something I should find surprising. I have dialed 911 zero times in my life.

He mentioned it because we were having lunch and the restaurant called 911 on a security guard acting crazy. The city sent a goddamn fire truck.

 

[Lukraak_Sisser]

Three times in my life.
Once when a drunk/drugged out hobo was sitting on my doorstep and looking like he needed a hospital
Once when our roof was on fire
Once when sitting in a restaurant and someone had an unexpected epileptic attack.

 

[Andy_Ross]

Once when I came across a crashed car and once when a drunk driver crashed through the garden wall and wrote off my wife's car.

 

[bonzombiekitty]

Since 2002, I've called 911 on the following occasions:

- Report a big group of people fighting in the middle of the street.
- Shortly following the above, called again to report that someone had taken out a gun a fired it into the air.
- Fire alarm going off in my apartment building
- Car broken into and needed a police report.
- House broken into.
- Report a couple girls fighting outside my house and that one of them pulled out a gun and chased the other down the street.
- Car accident (my car hit by someone running a red light)
- Witnessed a car "accident" - some car came tearing around a corner, slammed into a parked car and kept pushing it down the street some, then backed up and sped off.
- Some lady, drunk/high, trying to get into a house (possibly her own) and smashed a window trying to get in.
- Friend came home completely wasted, worse than I had ever seen, and became unresponsive; not knowing how much she drank I was worried about alcohol poisoning so I called an ambulance.

A couple of those may not seem to be 911 worthy, but it's important to note that in Philadelphia, if you need a police response of some sort whether it be an immediate "this guy pulled out a gun!" emergency or "someone smashed my car window last night and I need a report for insurance purposes" non-emergency, the police want you to call 911. It's what they use to track crime, prioritize all their calls, and plan patrols. In the words of our precinct captain - if you didn't call 911, it didn't happen.

 

[fagin]

I had to vote Planet X. Have never called an emergency number for anything.

 

[TragicMonkey]

I had to vote Planet X. Have never called an emergency number for anything.

Me, neither.

 

[fuelair]

Why no choice for NONE? I never have .(and, yes, I recognize that is less than once per year, but.................)

 

[PhantomWolf]

I've called twice in my life, and had one call made for me.

The two I made were 111 calls here is kiwiland. One was to get an ambulance for my mum when she had a really bad ear imbalance issue that left her throwing up and unable to walk, and once was when we had a burglar break in while we were at home.

The time I had one called, I was actually in the States with my now wife, and I started to cough and throw up, and it somehow irritate the lining in my throat causing it to bleed so I started to cough up blood. Happened to be the day that Dawn had taken the car in for servicing, so she called 911.

 

[pgwenthold]

I've called more than a dozen times over the years. First time I was a teenager, when our house was on fire (no injuries to family, firefighters, or pets, thankfully, though we lost a couple of family heirlooms, and we had to live in my grandparents' house for four months).

I called several times when I was in college, including reporting that some guys were using a water-balloon slingshot to bombard passing cars from the balcony of a fraternity, that an intoxicated person had fallen off a wall behind my dorm (apparently he wasn't seriously injured), that I'd been involved in a minor traffic accident, that there was a traffic accident with injuries near my dorm, that I was having heart palpitations from an accidental overdose of asthma medication (only time I've ever ridden in an ambulance), and, finally, that the dumpster behind my apartment building was on fire (it was the Fourth of July, and one of my roommates tried to convince me to wait to call because he wanted to shoot off some illegal fireworks, but I called anyway).

Since then I've called at least twice each to report being in a minor traffic accident, report a disabled vehicle, report debris on the highway, and report a malfunctioning traffic signal.

I've also called once each for another accidental overdose (paramedics checked me out but they said I seemed okay, so I didn't go to the hospital; I take safer asthma medications now), to report a car driving erratically, and to report a broken water main.

I haven't called it for me or mine, but I have called 911 on occasion when I see minor accidents happen on the road, or, as you say, disabled vehicles.

I usually only do it if the incident happens right as I am driving by, and not if it is just sitting there, because I figure they are waiting on something.

I once called 911 in the middle of the night because there were explosions that shook the ground. They said don't worry, but I found out it was that they had discovered a big stash of dynamite in someone's attic, so the local bomb squad took it to the quarry to set it off to destroy it. So I wasn't wrong about the explosions.

My main reason for calling 911 is when I think someone needs help. For a while, there was construction on the local interstate and it had been cut down to a single, very narrow lane. I was going through and a guy in front of me was having car troubles and his car stalled out. He pulled over as far as he could, and I was able to get by, but this was a bad situation and he needed help getting out of there. So I called 911.

 

[ahhell]

Once that I recall, for a road side fire, as soon as I said fire, they told me where it was. I was obviously not the first report.

I don't think minor accidents or disabled vehicle really merit a 911 call in most cases.

 

[DreamingNaiad]

I've only used non-emergency numbers. 101 for the police for neighbours fighting and an injured deer at the side of the road. NHS24 because I felt like a xenomorph was trying to chew its way out of me.

 

[pgwenthold]

Once that I recall, for a road side fire, as soon as I said fire, they told me where it was. I was obviously not the first report.

I don't think minor accidents or disabled vehicle really merit a 911 call in most cases.

Accidents? Absolutely (how do you know they are minor? Even a minor rear end can cause injury and damage, and if there is either, you want to have a police report. If I see an accident occur on the road, I am going to notify the police for them.

My wife was rear-ended a couple of years ago. No one hurt, and the guy gave her insurance information and a license plate number. It was a major hassle getting it covered for our insurance. Their response was, next time, call the police and file a report. It's better for everyone.

Disabled vehicles? If they are in the way, again, for sure. Just a car sitting on the shoulder, no, of course not. But if a vehicle breaks down in the middle of the road or in a place where there is no shoulder? Damn straight! You need police there.