In recent weeks, I have seen some horrifying 911 calls and it doesn’t always seem the person on the other end is taking it seriously enough. I know these guys are trained to not over react, but we are all human and sometimes over reacting isn’t a bad thing. The sense of urgency in a 911 operator’s voice I think could help the person on the other end, to know that their emergency is serious and will be taken care of in that manner. I believe some 911 operators are too cool, calm, and collective and this leaves the person on the other end, more worried that their situation isn’t being dealt with in the proper manner. I know a couple of the calls have been about a Toyota vehicle and how the accelerator has hung up and the person in the vehicle calls 911 for assistance. These calls are about as tough as it gets for a 911 operator and I just wonder if there isn’t something more they can do. I don’t have any answers and how an answering service like 911 could do any better than what they’re already doing; with the exception of a little more tone in their voice to the people that need help in emergency situations.

I can remember when the 9/11 event struck New York City and what 911 operators was forced to do in that situation back in 2001. After the planes struck the World Trade Center Towers, the emergency call center services for 911 had to go to a recording for people that needed emergency help. The recording on that infamous day told everyone that all emergency services was busy due to the events that were happening in lower Manhattan and no other emergency services were available at the time. We are all aware of what happened to the victims that were directly connected to the World Trade Center events on that sunny Tuesday back in 2001. What we may never learn is the victims that were not tied to the World Trade Center destruction on 9/11. The people that needed assistance in other parts of Manhattan and New York City, but was unable to get help, due to the magnitude of help that was needed at the Towers that day.

Obviously no one can plan for an event like 9/11 and something like that is just out of our hands. The other things that are far lower on the scale of emergencies, like a driver who is in a car and can’t get it to stop, needs the fastest response possible to avoid injury to their selves and other innocent folks on the highway. The need for more qualified 911 operators is out there and this field is our front line to saving people’s lives each day. No call center in America is going to be prepared for every emergency that takes place each day. As long as we can make improvements on the emergencies that do come up and learn the best methods to handle these unique situations, I think we can all rest better at night. The gas pedal that hangs up in a car is a good place to start. After hearing about this emergency more than once in recent months, I’m still not sure what I should do if this happens to me. I have a feeling that 911 operators are still trying to find the best ways to handle it on their end too.