OUT, Damned Demon, OUT!

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One of the things I love about my job is that no matter how long you’ve been there (almost 16 years now for me), you can never say “now I’ve seen everything!”  Last week provided another example of just how odd things can get on the other end of the 9-1-1 line.  Just what the caller thought WE could do, I’m not sure.  If Jesus is your first line of defense, and that fails, can the Sheriff really solve the problem??

It was late night, cold, damp and before payday.  Not much was going on,  and most of the trouble makers were staying in, or at least staying below everyone’s radar, with the exception of one hell raiser.

We got the call from a frantic family member.  They were worried that the exorcism wasn’t going well, and the possessed relative was getting out of control.  Grandma, the family demon ‘caster-outer’, was apparently not having her usual success, and the possessed agitated relative was still in full demonic mode.   Demonic possession is an ongoing issue for this particular person, according to our caller, and Grandma was usually successful in her casting-out skills, but not this night.

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9-1-1, It’s Not Just A Job, It’s A Mystery!

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1st mystery of 9-1-1: Why are you whispering??  Odds are very good “they” couldn’t hear you if you were screaming, and they’re probably too busy fighting with each other to notice you’ve left the room.  When I ask you to speak up, that doesn’t mean “speak even quieter!”  You called for help, but you’re on your cell phone, the signal is crappy, and they’re not designed to compensate for low voice levels.  You’re already in the same house, they’re going to know who called when the police show up, so whispering really doesn’t do anything to insure “they don’t know” you’re calling!   I can’t help you if I can’t hear you!  There’s no address information from a cell phone, and the location technology isn’t reliable.  Oh, I might know where you are, within a 1/2 mile or so, but if there’s anyone else there, or you’re in, say, an apartment complex…   well, you could be SOL.  Speak up!

2nd mystery of 9-1-1:  I understand you being upset that the neighbor’s music is loud, even inside your house.  I understand that you “can’t hear your own television” over the noise.  What I don’t understand is why you ask me “not to put it out over the radio, because they have a scanner”.  If YOU can’t hear YOUR television over the noise, how in the heck are THEY going to hear the scanner??  So, yes, the call is going out over the radio.  If they have a scanner that can outmuscle that powerful of a stereo, I WANT ONE!   And secondly, if they do manage to hear the scanner, and turn down the music before we get there, then your problem has been solved!  Either way, you win!

Call 9-1-1, FIRST!

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It happened again last night.  Someone called for help.  The only problem was, they didn’t call 9-1-1!  They called family.  In another state.  Halfway across the country!  THAT person called 9-1-1.  The trouble with that?  9-1-1 here isn’t the same 9-1-1 there.  (It’s not one big room of dispatchers.  I can’t stand up and yell “Yo! Boston! Line 3!”) Precious time is ticking away, and the person who needs help is endangering themselves by calling the wrong place.  The first person you think of when you need help can’t do much from 2,000 miles away!

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New Chairs!

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After much too long, we now have some new chairs in dispatch!  Designed for a dispatch center, where furniture must be able to stand up to heavy use 24/7/365, these new chairs are a welcome addition.  Our old chairs, although promoted as heavy duty, just were not up to the task.  We had bought them locally, from a business supply company, but only companies that understand dispatch centers are really able to design equipment that can handle the demands we place on things.  These chairs look like they’ll stand up well, and are very comfortable.  The old chairs were literally a pain in my…  hips.   Thank you Tulare County!

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