sounds like they’re Chebby guyz ....

DoC, you gonna "spare me a square?"

Others that work in the "industry" as I do will tell you that this is no shocker. We need to "wipe" out this practice of using 911 for everything. It ties up the dispatchers and delays them from answering other 911 calls that are reports of immediate threats to life or property, the real purpose of 911. Also, many, if not all now, jurisdictions respond an officer to all 911 calls to ensure the safety of the caller. My guess would be close to 50% are for non emergencies, and I'm talking about ordinary times. Maybe even more.

In the INDUSTRY??!!

Btw - how many of those that abuse 911 are actually disciplined?

OleHam2..... jsta fur you .... a cOuPlE !

Butt I can send some well dried out CORN COBS toooo !

I bet they are calling 911 when driving in the left lane. Seems to go hand in hand IMO.

It should be a felony, and it should be prosecuted every single time.

A related question, when 911 and caller ID first started, I was under the impression it was always advisable to call 911 upon initial hook up of a land line to confirm they had correct address/other info correct. I did it a number of times at different locations, the 911 operator seem slightly confused, so it must not have been common, but it did verify my info and they not send any 1st responders out. Since that was not an true "emergency" I would hope that use would still be exempt.

Screw ups happen, and you never know until you call them.

that is a valid perspective, as MANY areas across the country have identical street/road names [the spelling may be different] with the same location numbers [or no numbers at all] attached to them, causing dispatchers to send help to the wrong address.
this has happened somewhat frequently around here, sometimes with disastrous results.
for many years now, it has been directed time and again that all locations update their addresses, but not all have complied as of yet, leading to mistakes.
i'm not one who believes 911 should be called for anything other than an actual emergency, but there should be a policy of sorts that could be used to confirm your address is correct in your local EMS data base.

I can tell you landlines VERY seldom display the wrong information, but if you want to test yours, call the NON emergency dispatch number for your jurisdiction and ask first. That makes sense, doesn't it? Dispatchers don't want you calling and testing your phone while they are working a major event, and may have certain policies on testing. They deal with a lot of stress, give them a break if they got a little cranky because you tested your phone and didn't check first to see if it was okay.

People are pathetic, stupid and helpless. They've been conditioned to expect government to step in a fix every boo-boo and every unfair situation for them, regardless how stupid it may be.

I prefer to stick to the "never invite the man into your life" way of thinking.

"People are pathetic, stupid and helpless. They've been conditioned to expect government to step in a fix every boo-boo and every unfair situation for them, regardless how stupid it may be".

Sadly, we have taken a turn in this country over the last ten years or so that make this statement very true.

My house was built in 1987. The county issues an address to the builder per permit.

I live, physical, between 341st street and 340th street. My address was 33801 XX Ave SE meaning I was in the 338the block just off the corner of 338th. For 30 years no one could Google Map/GPS our house due to being 2 blocks too far north. Then the County, only for #911 reasons, they changed our address and we had to jump thru hoops getting everything changed to 34001 XX Ave SE.

Across the road from my other house there is a 1/2 number... they had that place built last year...
thats the first time I have seen a 1/2 number(as in 3744 1/2)

Not to me. Seems you agree the information can be wrong, and if your kid is the one in 50,000,000,000? that is calling and they have has the wrong info, its worth it.
Additionally, in the time it takes to get "permission ( from who, since its never known who will actually answer the 911 test call), numerous real emergency calls can call in, so no matter what you get permission for things can change nearly instantly.

Yes the operators can often have to deal with intense stressful situations, they are supposed to train for that, they are also supposed to be able "triage" a call, so most here I would think would not be put off if when making a concise clear request in a declared non emergency situation with the need to verify a correct address, etc information, they dumped your call.

I remember back in the 70's when applying for a permit for a concert in the City of Miami city building permit office, adjoining departments got in a big argument that stopped the permit process, because I had the "wrong" address, it was at the Orange Bowl, which took up and entire city block, and had four different addresses, one of which I was using..

there are two "1/2" numbers across the street from me, one being in existence since at least the 50's.
if that isn't bad enough, the alley beside my house is "2 short st.". it is a dead end, with a barn and a small house.
with that said, "short st." [the original] is on the opposite side. now imagine the confusion on a call to [#]2 short st. that could occur. [the old "who's on first" routine comes to mind]

jcc, very simply put, if you read my response I did not say don't do it, I said call the non emergency line first.

How about looking at it this way; if a 911 Dispatcher is on a line helping save one of your loved ones, and someone calls 911 simply to test their phone, how would you like them to be pulled away to take that caller testing their system? Often, our 911 Dispatcher have to cut calls shorter than preferred to take other incoming calls. It is preferred that the Dispatcher stay on the line on any in progress calls until Officer arrives. It can be critical in some situations.

I agree your suggestion is reasonable, I just disagree.

And to be clear, I would not want distract anyone from another's serious in progress 911 call.

Disagree with what then?

This:

"Originally Posted by larrymopar360
I can tell you landlines VERY seldom display the wrong information, but if you want to test yours, call the NON emergency dispatch number for your jurisdiction and ask first. That makes sense, doesn't it?"


Not to me. Seems you agree the information can be wrong, and if your kid is the one in 50,000,000,000? that is calling and they have has the wrong info, its worth it.
Additionally, in the time it takes to get "permission ( from who, since its never known who will actually answer the 911 test call), numerous real emergency calls can call in, so no matter what you get permission for things can change nearly instantly.

Yes the operators can often have to deal with intense stressful situations, they are supposed to train for that, they are also supposed to be able "triage" a call, so most here I would think would not be put off if when making a concise clear request in a declared non emergency situation with the need to verify a correct address, etc information, they dumped your call.

I remember back in the 70's when applying for a permit for a concert in the City of Miami city building permit office, adjoining departments got in a big argument that stopped the permit process, because I had the "wrong" address, it was at the Orange Bowl, which took up and entire city block, and had four different addresses, one of which I was using..