Just as much as they want to be there for you when you are dealing with an emergency, local law enforcement is asking for you to stick with them when you accidentally call them. Of the 313 calls received by Door County Dispatch over the weekend, nearly 60 of them were considered as either 911 hang-ups or 911 follow-ups, which are often triggered by a misdial. Door County Sheriff’s Department Deputy Pat McCarty says every one of those calls requires a lot of resources and often means diverting deputies from more pressing issues. In Kewaunee County, the number of 911 misdials and hang-ups so far this year is 513, compared to 586 total in 2022 and 990 total in 2021. Kewaunee County Sheriff Matt Joski says cell phone users need to be aware of how their apps work and if they do mistakenly dial 911 to stay on the line.
Both Joski and McCarty agreed that 911 hang-ups and misdials are near the top in the types of calls their respective dispatch centers receive every month.
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MORE FROM SHERIFF MATT JOSKI
As we reach the midpoint of 2023, it has become apparent that the calls for service in regard to 911 hang-ups, continues to be an issue. In 2021 we had a total 990 calls due to 911 Hang ups, however in 2022 it decreased to 586. Thank you to everyone for being vigilant and helping to reduce those calls. So far in 2023 our calls numbers for 911 hang-ups are at 513 and continue to be an all-too-common occurrence which draws resources from our Dispatch Center as well as our Patrol Deputies who follow up on these calls. At this rate we will be over 1,000 of these calls.
As you can imagine, in either of these cases, we must ascertain the dynamics behind that hung up call as we cannot run the risk of assuming all hang ups were innocent in nature. While many were in fact a result of operator error, there have been those calls where only after following up do we determined that an assault, domestic or other violent situation was occurring.
Just a few quick reminders and mentions of some contributing factors that have lead to these incidents.
-Avoiding placing your phone in areas of your vehicle which may inadvertently activate a 911 call such as a cup holder.
-Avoid putting your phone in your pocket when you are engaged in dynamic physical activity such as cutting lawn, or operating an ATV where the phone is not stable as hitting the power button numerous times can activate a 911 call.
-Avoid leaving your phone in areas where small children can access it. This also pertains to phones you have that are de-activated as these phones are still capable of dialing 911.
-Be mindful of devices such as smart watches which have also shown the tendency to be the source of inadvertent 911 calls.
If you do find yourself on the line with one of our dispatchers due to an accidental dial, please stay on the line and provide the proper information to our Dispatcher so that we can close out the call and prevent the need to send officers to your location. If you have already hung up realizing your error, please answer when the Dispatcher calls you back.
We appreciate everyone’s attentiveness to this issue and I have no doubt we can decrease the number of these calls thus reducing the time and costs associated with them. Take Care & Stay Safe!
