Calling 911 in other states

I just got a TracPhone, and I'm not very familiar with cell phones.

If you are out of your local area, such as in another state, and have to make a 911 call, which dispatcher answers the call, the one from your local area or the one nearest where you are now?

Sue

Sue I'm almost sure that you would get the local operator for 911, I use Nextel and have used the phone in Idaho and Nevada and got local operators for the 911 calls
Mike

911 calls are treated differently by the cellphone system. They go to the dispatch center nearest the cell tower that receives your signal. It doesn't matter which cell provider you have either. I have an older Nokia analog/digital model which is not on contract. It can still dial and reach 911, when they have the time to answer.

The one time that I needed to dial 911 out of state on my cell phone (car accident) I got a local 911 service. When I gave them the street intersection, I was told that it was in the next county. I do not remember if they transfered me or if they gave me the number to dial, but they did get me in touch with the right PD to handle the call.

It can vary from state to state. In CA, unless they have changed in the last eight months or so, from a cell you will get the California Highway Patrol, no matter where you are in the state. It should be the nearest CHP dispatch center, but cell sites do strange things some time. The CHP dispatcher will then transfer you to the appropriate agency, assuming that you aren't calling in a traffic problem.

And by law a 911 call can only be transferred one time, so you'd better hope that you get the correct agency by that time, or which every dispatch you have by then will be the one you are stuck with...

Happy New Year Sue ,
You can call your local PD, SO, and Highway Patrol (at their public numbers, not the 911 number) and ask them. They should know, at least when you're in your home area, who you're going to get. When you're roaming, I agree with the others - you'll get the dispatch (most likely PD) for whatever locality is closest to the nearest cell tower to your phone.

If I remember right, you're in the NW area. If you're in a small town, you can go down to the PD or SO (SO is almost always more friendly - they're always kind of down-home and back-woodsy people) and speak directly to the dispatchers. They'll probably let you drive away a few miles, make a 911 call, and answer it without giving you any crap. You know.... just to test it.

If all else fails, you can ask tracfone.com

Everything you ever wanted to know about wireless 9-1-1, from the National Emergency Number Association.

http://www.nena.org/pages/ContentList.asp?CTID=23

Thank you all for your answers.

What brought this up was remembering a woman in OR who was on her land line carry-around phone, and tripped over a toy, fell backwards onto some kind of glass coffee table, which broke.

Her phone went flying, but she screamed to her friend (in CA) that the large shards of glass were holding her in place (sticking into her) and she was bleeding.

Her friend called her local 911 and told them what had happened, and that her friend was in OR. The dispatcher just couldn't seem to understand the problem. The friend gave the dispatcher her friend's name, address and phone number. The dispatcher called the number and reported that the phone was busy, so she couldn't verify the incident.

The call was finally relayed, but it took over 45 minutes for paramedics to get the call and get to the woman's home.

I was visualizing a roadside life-threatening emergency while trying to deal with a brain-dead dispatcher back home.

Thanks!

Sue

One idea in that situation, if you were the person talking to the one who dropped the phone would be to quickly conference 911 and the friend. The phone companies will do it for a small fee now so you don't need to have that service on your plan.
Also make sure your cell phone in always on you. Women are bad about putting cell phones in their purses and besides being annoying when there is a ringing purse sitting on someones desk if someone grabs your purse and runs or you fall and can't reach it then you can't reach your phone. Alway keep it on a belt, in a pocket, etc.

In that particular case, she dropped the phone out of reach when she fell. She didn't even know if the phone had disconnected when it landed. All she could do is hope that her friend was still there, could hear her, and could do something.

Sue

Thats why I was saying to keep a cell phone attached to your person, drop the land line you still have the cell as a backup.

You've got to recharge it SOMETIME! <img src="/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

Sue

It's not always possible, but a cell phone should only be used to effecitvely communicate that you are injured and where you are. You should possess the self-knowledge and skill to save your own butt. Do not rely on others to come save you.

Yes, I realize there are other things like stroke's, heart attacks, and other accidents, or simply caught unprepared, and immediate help is needed and you could die in a matter of minutes. If this is the case, then, well, you're going to need more than a cell phone on your side.

Always know where you are. I have to admit, I don't always do this, and have realized if something happened, I have no effective way to locate myself within miles. Pay attention when you are travelling in unfamiliar area.

though it's pretty much been covered at this point, i just wanted to confirm that you will get a local 911 operator. I formerly worked for a national wireless provider, and they take 911 calls pretty seriously, before activating any new cell towers a 911 test must be performed to make sure they route the calls to the proper authority. while you could still not get the exact closest dispatcher (for example, if you are close to a town or state border, etc) you will get one very near by, not one from your phone's home area code.

Thats while I'm driving. <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />
I put a 12v jack in the center console and the cell phone cord stays there. When I sit in the seat I plug the phone in and slide it back in my pocket and when I get to where I'm going I unplug it and stick the cord back in the console.
I put the 120v charger that came with the phone in my bob/truck kit under the seat so when staying overnight somewhere I have that charger with me should it be needed.

This kind of stuff happens WAY too frequently. I've had to yell at dispatchers in order to get them to be a little quicker on getting the job done. I live in a well... more "active" part of town. Even when I can get through the call quickly and they tell me they're on it, when listening to the scanner, I've heard the police call go out more than an hour later. With EMS it has always been quicker...but I've still heard plenty of botched calls.

Don't get me wrong...there are PLENTY of fantastic dispatchers...in fact I've known a few. However, as with any vocation there is dead weight. Unfortunately people in dire emergencies pay for the dead weight in the dispatcher world.

..."SO"???

???

I think that might be short for "Sheriff's Office"?

This is not directed specifically at yeti, but to all that think that 911 dispatchers don't do a good job. Call your local law enforcement agency's business number and ask to "sit along" in the 911 center on a busy shift for a few hours. See if it is a job you would like to do for 40-60 hours per week (overtime is manditory in many 911 centers, as they cannot find qualified employees). It is an unpleasant work environment in many jurisdictions, for many reasons. Those who are judging based upon their experience of one or two phone calls should try being on the receiving end of an average of one call per minute for a 10-hour shift (in a busy 911 center).

San Francisco is one exception in California. "Most" cellular calls within the city are routed directly to the city 911 center, depending on which cell tower your phone connects with. Like OldBaldGuy said, you don't necessarily connect with the geographically closest tower. Anyway, the rest of the cellular calls in SF are answered by the CHP. But I'm in southern Cal now and I'm not sure how it works down here yet. I should find that out.

When I lived in NYC, I believe those cellular calls were also routed to the city dispatchers.

I second that. During the hurricanes of 2004 I was able to sit in a dispatch center and relayed 2 emergency dispatches via amateur radio. The room was all business, unlike the normally dead times where nothing is going on, it was constant work for 8 hours.

It's critical the calltaker ask the right questions, because if they don't, the call may not be prioritized correctly and people may die.

I wish there was a better way in this country to let those who get paid the big bucks in technology fields, to give more back to the community. Not to sacrifice training, but if there was a way for me to be a dispatcher part time, I'd do it in a heart beat. The closest I get is volunteering in amateur radio.