Have you ever called 9-1-1?

[Fedup]

No personally. But somebody called 911 when my mom collapsed before they discovered she had lung cancer.

 

[Fermion]

I called 911 when we were hiking in a on leash county trail system and were charged by really large off leash dogs. The owners were making no attempt at calling back the dogs who were aggressively blocking our path.

They put me in touch with the local sheriff who asked me if I had a CC (we do) and he said next time you should be carrying and shoot the dogs!

 

[Fermion]

Oh, and the one other time I can remember calling 911 was when the RR crossing gate didn't go down even when a train was approaching and passing. I didn't have a smart phone at the time to look up the number of the RR and figured the police might be able to do something about the malfunctioning gate.

In hindsight, probably the engineer on the train had made a note of the gate not coming down.

 

[Amethyst]

Mr. A. called 911 the first time I miscarried. We had no idea I was pregnant and when I called my GYN to report strange symptoms, she blew me off. By the time he called 911, I was on the floor in a pool of blood and my BP was 60/40. Not only did the EMTs get there in a flash, we heard a helicopter overhead as I was being taken away on a stretcher, followed by emergency surgery. The fast response probably saved me from bleeding to death.

 

[W2R]

Many years ago I called 911 when my MIL fell and cracked her head open.

But what if someone passes away unexpectedly in their sleep?

I would be concerned that maybe the person isn't actually dead yet, but just looks dead to me. Maybe immediate medical attention from somebody who knew what they were doing, could save the person's life.

I'd call 911 to get the paramedics out there who would be able to tell the status of this person and could possibly revive the person.

 

[Rambler]

Twice.

Once for a chimney fire, on Christmas Eve...DW decided she didn't like the sight of the kindling wood I had brought home to light our fireplace and stuck it all in to the fireplace, while it was already burning...a whole box full of it. I was in another room. Soon a passerby noticed flames coming out of our chimney. I got the kids and wife and MIL out of the house, called 911, used a fireplace fire extinguishing device, followed by a regular fire extinguisher, and by the time the fire dept was there, the whole thing was over. They did check to see that the chimney was not on fire. I had a chimney sweep guy come out a week later to check for damage...there was none. But thanks to that passerby we are all alive.

Second time was July 31 last year. DW and I had gone to bed 15 minutes earlier, and I was in that "barely drifted to sleep" phase. I heard a deep guttural scream/groan come from DW, then gasping. I turned the light on, and tried to get her to respond. She was twitching and convulsing, which lasted maybe a minute, but she could not respond. She can be a bit of an exaggerator, so I threaten to call 911 if she did not respond, and she did not, so I called 911. Turns out, she had experienced a seizure of the tonic clonic variety, what used to be called grand mal. She started coming around after the ambulance got there, but was still in that fuguelike state...she didn't know who I was or where she was, or what was happening. At the time, I thought she might be having a stroke...it runs in her family. Anyway the ambulance took her. I put the dogs out in the yard, and grabbed a bottle of water because I was in such a horrible mental/emotional state that my mouth was completely void of saliva, and took off for the hospital. I followed the speed limit to the letter...not wanting to be pulled over on the way to the hospital, but still I arrived there 10-15 minutes before the ambulance. Note that on the way I had called our religious leader, just in case, who showed up at the hospital right after I did. We've always wondered why it took them so long to get to the hospital...did they stop for coffee along the way? Take the long way? Who knows.

DW went on to suffer 4 more seizures after that...once she had two during the same night. But I'd been educated by then by her neurologist on what to do and when 911 would be necessary. She is on Keppra now, an anti-epilepsy drug, along with preventative Ativan when she get the precursor headache that seems to affect her. She is now 5.5 months seizure free, and we are hoping her doc will clear her for driving again soon. Long story for a simple question, but this episode literally scared the H3LL of me. Good thing I'm retired, or I would have had to retire. Doc required that someone be with her 24/7 for the first months after, because it was not controlled and a reason was not pinpointed. We now think we know the reason (cavernoma) and it seems to be controlled.

 

[MRG]

Several times. One was when a person following me decided they were the only person on I-70 who didn't need to stop. I-70 had to be shut down for her vehicle to be removed from the highway. The person was pretty irate I hadn't run back through traffic to check on them. I could see they were alert and active. I didn't ask why they hadn't checked on me. Seemed like getting assistance to us was the highest priority.

I've had 911 called for me a few times. Once at Megacorp, when I had a TGA at work. They thought, EMTs too, I'd had a stroke. The Docs straightened it out quickly.

Another time I was attacked by the spare tire on my truck, the safety device trapped my hand. All I needed was some leverage, vise grips, to release my fingers. The 911 dispatch insisted DW stay away from me.

Their mental picture was I was under the truck changing a tire and I was trapped. Well not quite. My hand was, but past a bruise only my ego was suffering. They had dispatched a whole crew, fire engine, ambulance, utility vehicles, quite the show.

I had a great laugh with the folks after the mighty vise grips saved me. They did ask it I wanted to go to the ER, I gratefully declined.


Last year DW called 911 on me when my BP was down to 60/40 and staying conscious was difficult. The EMTs received permission to give me fluids to try bringing it up. Man was that fluid cold, I was shaking uncontrollably in about 2 minutes. A heat pack was put on the line, what a difference. Fortunately I responded and they didn't transport me.

 

[Aerides]

Twice:

1- Late teens, home alone in parents house. Put pan of oil on stove to heat up, and then forgot about it until I heard and saw flames leaping up the side of the kitchen wall. Called 911 but hung up and decided I need to figure out how to work a fire extinguisher, stat (I did!) They called back and then the fire dept came. Parents got nice new kitchen cabinets out of it. Whole house had to be smoke-cleaned.

2- 5 years ago, came home from work. The handles on my back patio entry french doors were off (like you could see they had been pushed thru the holes. Clearly an attempted break in. I quickly went back out the front door, and called 911 not waiting to find out if someone was already in the house. (luckily not). We have heavy duty hurricane doors and windows, and they had tried to crow-bar and smash their way in several of them but failed, leaving many lovely prints in their wake. Those doors were expensive, but paid for themselves that day.

 

[Big_Hitter]

DW called 911 when my MIL was stuck sitting on the toilet with a bad case of the flu.

They ended up taking her to the hospital.

 

[stepford]

Once just a year before ER in bad weather during the early morning commute my car was hit by a truck who left the scene. I pulled over, dialed 911, described the accident and was asked if there were any injuries - no - if I could identify the other driver - also no - and was told to be on my merry way. Yay.

 

[Sunset]

So many serious reasons.
Where I live, they told me to phone 911 for the cops to come pick up a stray kitten...

I personally feel this is a waste of 911 services, so when I phoned I immediately said " this is not an emergency, but I was told to phone to for a pick up of stray cats".

Did it 3 times over the years.

 

[45th Birthday]

When my mother was still alive, I was visiting and we were driving somewhere when she had a TIA (she wasn't the driver). Pulled over at a 7-11 (pre-cell phone days) and called 911. They sent an ambulance right away, but the operator annoyed me because she didn't tell me that until I insisted for about the fifth time she do it.


At my old company, we bought a fancy new copier. It was connected to a phone line and would report trouble so a repairman could be dispatched. For unknown reasons, it started dialing 911. Repeatedly. The (Chicago) cops kept coming and were getting a little peeved. We finally figured out the cause and pulled the phone plug on that thing.


At the place where we spend the winter, calling 911 will automatically get you the police, an ambulance, and at least one fire truck. No matter what. Where we spend the summer, the ambulance staff aren't even equipped to treat people, just transport. And the fire department is partly volunteer. Hope never to have to dial those three digits from there.

 

[scrabbler1]

Back in the late 1980s, when I was living in a rental apartment, the upstairs neighbors were having loud party late at night with a lot of people there. Not wanting to take them on alone, I called 9-1-1 (I don't think we had a non-emergency number back then). It was a garden apartment building, with separate outdoor entrances for each apartment, so I knew just when the cops arrived 15 minutes later and went upstairs to the offending neighbors. Less than a minute later, before the cop car disappeared from view, all was all quiet upstairs.


I learned months later from one of their adjacent neighbors that they did some drug dealing out of their apartment, so the offending neighbors might have been glad they didn't get nailed for that! I moved out of there less than a year later and into my current co-op apartment.

 

[LOL!]

So many serious reasons. [...]

My fiancée called me after she was mugged and the perps made her drive her car around while they went through her purse with a gun pointed at her. Kind of a kidnapping added to the crime.

I told her to call 911.

They caught the criminals because they left evidence in the car: A completed food stamp application with their names and address.

 

[NameRedacted]

About 10 years ago on a Sunday at work, heard some yelling and shouting from another room. Went to investigate and found an outside contractor lying on his back with his foot twisted at an ungodly angle. He said he was setting up some computers in a training room and got his foot stuck between two table legs. His other foot got caught in some cables. He fell over but his foot stayed where it was.

The guy was too big to move easily so I called for an ambulance, but had to explain the situation multiple times to the dispatcher before they would send the ambulance. I got the impression she thought there was more to the story than what I was saying.

Saw the guy again a few months later and he was in a wheelchair.

Gotta be careful out there guys - never know when a freak accident can spoil your life.

 

[Ronstar]

I did some consulting on a county 911 mapping system, and was discussing it with the IT guy at his office in the county courthouse. He called the 911 office while I was there-but he dialed 911. He realized it and hung up, but it was too late. The courthouse's sheriff deputies were in his office within a few minutes. The IT guy had a hard time explaining that one.

 

[Katiek]

Once by mistake. I was dialing into a conference call from home, forgot I didn't need to dial "9" and restarted with the 1-800 part. Unfortunately, in my misdialing, I dialed 911 by mistake. When my call ended, I got a call from the operator asking what my emergency was. Oops.

 

[Chris7]

We called for a gas leak once. Fire Engine and two police cars showed up. The police approached first and then allowed the FM to enter. We don't live in a dangerous spot at all so still felt the police approach to start was weird.

 

[ABQ2015]

In the early 1980's, I was living in a budget apartment while working a low level job and going to college - the apartment complex was a series of four plexes. About 3 am, I hear screams from a unit across the courtyard with the woman screaming and the man yelling that he was going to kill her. Called 911 and they wanted all this information that I was not able to provide. No police ever came and the screaming stopped. The couple was still alive the next morning. I mentioned this to another neighbor and her response was that the couple did this all the time to spice up their sex life. Boy did I feel like an idiot!

 

[RobbieB]

Many times.

One for some idiots that started a grass fire in the field behind my house shooting illegal fireworks.

Three to transport Pops to the hospital and one more to put him back in bed after he fell out at home.

 

[rodi]

FIL choked on dinner one night - my step mom was calling 911 while my DH did the Heimlich. We were able to dislodge the piece of meat - but at that point he was lying on the floor of our living room (he was partially paralyzed and in a wheelchair. The paramedics checked him out and got him back in his wheelchair.

MIL called several times over FIL's last several years... one time when he leaned back in his wheelchair and hit his head on the floor hard.... and 2 more choking situations.

 

[Revlefty]

Just a couple of months ago, at the final practice before our church's Easter choir presentation, one of the basses crumpled and fell off the back of the risers (about three feet down). We called 911 and they came quickly. We had quite a bit of trouble moving the risers and platform furniture around so they could get the stretcher to him.

They hauled him off to the hospital and he got checked out and kept overnight--but was back in the choir on Sunday morning--but he sang sitting down in a chair.

Someone passing out can really put a damper on a choir rehearsal.

 

[audreyh1]

Many years ago I called 911 when my MIL fell and cracked her head open.

But what if someone passes away unexpectedly in their sleep?

It depends. When my mom was in her last days dying from cancer we knew to call the local coroner who also ran the funeral home. And that's who we called in the middle of the night.

Well, I guess in that case it wasn't unexpected.

We have the non-emergency number for our police department.

As well as the dispatch number for Customs and Border Patrol.

 

[MRG]

Once by mistake. I was dialing into a conference call from home, forgot I didn't need to dial "9" and restarted with the 1-800 part. Unfortunately, in my misdialing, I dialed 911 by mistake. When my call ended, I got a call from the operator asking what my emergency was. Oops.

Happens frequently. When Megacorp starting their UK office you had to dial 9 to get out, then 011 for UK long distance then the number. Folks would frequently drop the 0 and dial 911. We all had to get educated to stay on the line and explain what happened. I almost made the same mistake right after the HR email describing the problem.

 

[jimnjana]

My FIL was in the hospital, recovering from shoulder surgery. The nurse had left him in the chair, and had left his call button console on the opposite side of the bed. He tried calling out for help over the course of an hour or so. No one heard him. Since he could reach the phone he called 911. He told him what his situation was, they asked him if he knew he was calling from the Hospital and he told them his situation again. He never had any trouble getting help in the hospital again.