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Nine-one-one is the number to call to get help in a police, fire or medical emergency. A 9-1-1 call is transmitted over dedicated phone lines to the emergency agency (police, fire, sheriff) assigned to the city or area you are calling from. Trained dispatchers then send emergency help as needed.
A nine-one-one call will automatically connect you to a trained professional who will answer your call, ask you to describe your emergency situation and route the necessary emergency personnel to your location to assist you.
911 is a reporting number. Call 911 to report an incident that you believe requires the response or intervention of a law enforcement officer, firefighter or emergency medical service. The professionals answering the 911 call will determine which agencies or units should respond and how quickly they need to reach the scene of the incident.
Call 9-1-1 when:
- a person is hurt or injured
- a crime has been or is being committed
- a motor vehicle accident occurs
- any situation involving a fire
- any serious situation
Special computers and monitors display the location and phone number where the 911 call originated. A typical 911 display will give the phone number of the caller, the address – apartment or lot number, and the name of the telephone service subscriber.
Telephone computers are set up to identify the location where the 911 call originated and automatically route it to the correct 911 center for the geographic location. In Cass County, a 911 call from anywhere in the county will go to the Cass Communications Center.
911 works the same way from businesses; however, if the business has a private switchboard (PBX), the call may originate from one of several different buildings or floors. An example of this would be a hospital. The information displayed on the 911 screen will show the location of the switchboard. The 911 dispatcher will ask the caller for specific location information, such as which building or floor and room.
You can call 911 from a pay phone. It is a free call. The address information from the pay phone is provided on the 911 display screen.
Cellular phones can call 911 as a free call. Cass county E9-1-1 Communications Center is capable of receiving both Phase 1 and Phase 2 cellular 911 calls, depending on the capabilities of the cellular phone carrier. Phase 1 calls display the tower location and the cell phone number. Phase 2 calls display the cell phone number and the latitude and longitude of the caller within 300 meters, depending on which cell phone carrier you have. Verizon, Nextel, Sprint PCS, and US Cellular all use a GPS chip, which is accurate within 25 meters. Centennial and T-Mobile use a triangulation chip, which is accurate within 300 meters. Check with your cell phone carrier to verify if your phone has the capabilities of delivery the 911 location. All cellular 911 calls in Cass County are answered by the Cass County E9-1-1 Communications Center.
The State of Indiana permits each county to collect a user fee on the telephone bills of the telephone service customers within the county. A user fee is also collected on cellular phones. The revenues from the 911 user fee may be used only to pay the cost of the 911 system, telephone equipment, computer and location database charges, other required equipment, salaries, and administrative expenses and limited other expenses.
YES! The Indiana Code states that it is a Class B misdemeanor if a person commits false informing. False informing, according to IC 35-44-2-2(c), is defined as: “A person who gives a false report of the commission of a crime or gives false information in the official investigation of the commission of a crime, knowing the report or information to be false; gives a false alarm of a fire to the fire department of a governmental entity, knowing the alarm to be false; makes a false request for ambulance service to an ambulance service provider, knowing the request to be false.”
- Don’t use 911 to play games. False 911 calls tie up the lines and could prevent a genuine emergency call from getting through.
- Don’t call for situations that are not time sensitive or which do not require the response of police, fire, or emergency medical services.
- Don’t call 911 to report inconveniences such as no electricity or plumbing problems or to ask for weather reports or other information. Use the administrative line: 574-722-6060
- Post your house number clearly so emergency responders can find you quickly.
- Update your personal information.
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