Nine-one-one is the three digit
telephone number that has been designed for public use throughout
the United States to report an emergency and request emergency
assistance. Emergencies usually involve police, fire or emergency
medical services. 911 gives the public direct access to a public
safety answering point (PSAP) which will arrange for dispatch of the
appropriate emergency services.
HOW DOES IT WORK? - as you may know, Chenango County
has been providing it's residents with Basic 911 service for almost
8 years. The County maintains its own database with address and
telephone information for every resident within the county. What
this means is, if you dial 911, the address information
automatically is displayed in front of the dispatcher, including a
map of your road and who your emergency responders are. The only
draw back is maintaining the information on a day to day basis.
Residents are constantly moving and without notifying our office,
the information isn't updated.
But, as you may also know, this all has changed
since Chenango County implemented Enhanced 911.
the major difference between the Basic 911 and 'E911' , is now when
you dial 911 the call is sent to the Bell Atlantic database, where
it gathers your address, name and emergency responder information.
The call is then sent to a selective router that tells it which
county to go to. When the call arrives at the Control Center, after
approximately 5 seconds, the dispatcher can view the above
information and dispatch the proper agency. The best part of this
process is that the information in the Bell Atlantic Database is
updated every 24 hours and we can be more certain that the
information in front of the dispatcher is current.
When you reach the dispatcher, you will be asked to
verify the location from which you are calling and to describe the
nature of the emergency. STAY CALM AND DO NOT HANG UP! If needed,
you will be given Emergency Medical information while on the phone
with the dispatcher. If you call from a cellular phone, your call
will be routed to the N.Y.S. Police. Describe the nature of your
emergency and your call will be routed to the appropriate agency.
Make sure you provide them with your 911 address so that they can
provide the responding agency with quick directions.