911 ANSWERS EMERGENCY CALLS ONLY - Alternative Lines Available For Information

(07/19/2001)
Calhoun Control, the local 911 center, gets some strange and fascinating calls at times, most of which tie-up 911 lines. 911 Dispatcher Lisa Purvis said there are critical times when 911 is being called by several individuals regarding the same situation.

"If a second emergency happened during those minutes, the caller might not get through." Non emergency calls to 911 while an emergency is on board can create a critical problem.

"We really try to be helpful to people, but we really don't want them to call 911," said Purvis. "Sometimes it is like 411 instead of 911." She said most people apologize for calling 911 when they don't know where to call, unaware of the alternative numbers.

Burl Postalwaite at Calhoun's 911 Center

A man called 911 reporting his phone didn't work, later to discover he hadn't paid his bill. Another was trying to track-down her husband. Most non-emergency inquires are for phone numbers of agencies. "We do get stray dog calls," said Purvis.

The access to non-emergency calls to Calhoun Control is often confusing in the phone book, which also creates a problem.

The the non-emergency lines (write them down now) to Calhoun Control:

354-9271 (or) 354-9272