4/18/14 - Local 911 central dispatchers help keep the community safe, and they are asking parents not to let their children harass their dispatch center. Dispatcher Mary Reed tells WHMI one of the most pressing messages they would like to get out to the county is that every active cell phone can contact 911, and that is not always a good thing. She says many adults like to give their old cell phones to children as toys, but once the children discover the old phones can call 911 and connect to a live person, they call nonstop. Reed says this remains true even if the phone has no service plan, so adults who cancel service and give their old phones to children as toys may not realize they can call the dispatch center. Answering these calls is a distraction for dispatchers, and locating cell phones that are used to call 911 is still very difficult, so it is up to parents to make sure children are not harassing the dispatch center. This week was National Public Safety Telecommunicators Week, where 911 dispatchers and other who work behind the scenes in public safety were recognized for the work they do supporting local police, fire, and EMS. (TD)
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