WHEN I WAS a 9-1-1 dispatcher, you would not believe the useless calls we would get from people. People calling to say their utilities were cut off...(cause they didn't pay the bill!), people calling to say they wanted to sue so and so...people calling for a ride to the store! (yes it happened!)
I even had some guy call one night for a ride to the hospital. When I asked him what the emergency was, he told me there was no emergency. He wanted a ride to the hospital to visit his brother.
I, did though, have a stupid moment! I was a freshly minted dispatcher..working my first shift solo. A elderly gentleman called 9-1-1 to say that his brother had shot himself in the head! I quickly scanned my brain for the right questions to ask...The first thing that popped out was..."Is he bleeding?"
This was followed by a moment of silence...then the man said "Of course he's bleeding, he shot himself in the head!"
