The stupid part of Emergency services

[firefighter111]

I just thought I'd create a topic where all of us involved in emergency services could post about the stupid things we, hear, see, and do on the many calls we go on for everyone's enjoyment.

This is my new personal favorite, my county's 911 center answer upon being told a bls unit was at an intercept with an als unit: "recieved we'll show you and regional (the als unit) meeted up."

I wasn't aware meeted up was a word.

Another one of my personal favorites, my EMS agency is luckily dispatched by the local pd, so we don't get bothered as much by the 911 center as the rest of the county, but unfortunately, when someone calls 911 rather than the local emergency number, it goes to the 911 center and then comes to our dispatch in the CAD "Respond to the Mobile gas station, 1 Maple Ave ..." in the background, you can hear one of the other dispatchers saying "it's the wrong address?", and then "disregard the page, 911 put in the wrong address."

[njboy13]

911 call for an elderly woman unconscious.

We get there, we walk inside, to be greeted by the woman's daughter with a pile of papers. She informed us that her mother IS conscious and alert, but their doctor called with results of a test and said she should come to the hospital.

I talked to my dispatcher friend later, and he said that the first time the lady called, she told them about the call and that she just needs a non-emergency transport, but he told her that we don't do non-emergency transports. Then, a few minutes later, she called again saying her mother was unconscious.

1. We had to leave dinner because of a non-emergency transport.

2. A real call came in while we were transporting, which tied up a fire engine and fire ambulance, and a the same time a fire call came in, and they had 6 less guys because they were dealing with a medical that we should have been dealing with.

[szron]

I haven't been to the board in a while but I'll contribute here.

So... I had a pleasure to spend a day in my local city Dispatch Center. They had dispatcher off today so there was an police officer filling in for one of the dispatchers. Standard procedure, but officers are not allowed to answer 911s unless all the dispatchers are busy. So we've got some calls coming. It's getting pretty busy. One of the dispatchers is on a line with a lady that states that she have seen a serial killer in Ohio (note that we are in Detroit Metro Area). She demands local police to go and investigate. Dispatcher can't just hang up on her so she tries to explain to her that she's calling the wrong place. We've got more calls coming in. Second dispatcher is getting one and police officer is forced to take another one (there were 2 dispatchers and police officer there). Next call coming in. Second dispatcher is forced to put one call on HOLD to take another one. And an engine calling for repeat of address. 15 minutes of chaos in this place... everything because of stupid lady that decided to call 911... what a waste of resources.

Another call...

I was riding along with an officer and we receive a call through CAD about "Protesters in front of a bank". We head to the address and what we see? Girl scouts selling cookies... We called in it as it was (we even asked on a radio if anyone want to buy some ) and then the best part. Caller called again and he demanded the girl scouts to be ticketed... Please...

[RussianRescueR]

Well, perhaps I will tell something ...

Call:

- This is the fire brigade?

- Not exactly, FIRE SERVICE 01, Dispatcher - XXXXX, and what happened?

- our firefighter fallen from the wall, probably, he to his death ...

- And now with him in which he is condition??

- When I ran to call you, he was lying, and hissed out of it WAS WHITE FOAM

- Why did you call us on 01 !!!??? It should be the same in such cases, call 03, and soon an ambulance call! Okay, most say the exact address, we ourselves will do everything!

-- You have me, probably not understood - ... He TUBE STRAIGHT ... His throat is torn and from there WAS white foam ...

- Girl, gather - TALK ADDRESS ASAP!!

At the place was sent ambulance intensive care and fire vehicle. It turned out she had messed up fire fighter and fire extinguisher.

_________________________________

Last summer:

June. Heat. +35 C. 2 PM. We just had dinner wash our fire engines.

Suddenly the alarm - structure fire, possible threat to people.

After 5 minutes, already in place.

we see: Two-storey building. From the windows on the second floor is smoke. Civilians at intermission scream that inside an apartments - old woman and she does not open the door, maybe she was dying.

Do not waste time. We put a ladder, break a window and enters the apartment. AND, WHAT. WE. SEE?

An old woman sits and stirs up the stove with firewood. Summer. at +35 C

The question: what you doing? She replies: I'm frozen.

The apartment is so much smoke that, without the SCBA can not breathe. To leave the apartment to the old woman refuses - " you everything steal"

Grab a bucket of water - stew stove. Then the old woman rushes at us with fists - you are my entire apartment filled with water! All wet!

And we're not waiting for the end of the concert went back into the station.

[Grim_Wizard]

Boy I've got stories. : \

A few years ago while I was still a crew member and not a supervisor, we were sitting around when we get a call for a trapped person in a house. Then they read out the address, it's in the middle of a residential area, so we thought someone was in really freaking trouble. So we leave the station, supervisor, rescue truck, ladder truck, and ALS ambulance. We turn the corner, stop, and the supervisor, myself, and the TO from the ladder get out. Knock on the door, so one is home. Then we see an elderly woman trying to catch our attention, she eventually tells us that the person is in a tree, not a house, and then we find it wasn't a person at all, but it was some house pet that got excited and ran up the tree. : S

I have a kind of creepy one, but it's all cool, this is for stupidity. : P

[Unit 42]

I got one. A call came in a year ago when someone pulled a medical alarm so the engine and medic ran the call. We get there and there is this elderly man saying that he has a bomb under his apartment.......little did I know, a different shift responded to the same place earlier that monday in the week and had to call a bunch of cops since the SAME old man said he heard shooting next door to his apartment. The police broke open the door next to the elderly man's apartment and found a lady eating some chicken . Anyway, we ended up calling the police and EMS supervisor so all in all, we stayed in a place for over half an hour when there was more of a psych patient than any other illness. I laughed a bit when I replayed what happened in my head haha.

[gizmo719]

Man oh Man where to Start,

Heres a good one, I happen to be on a medic rig and we where in heading back to quarters. Its about 7pm on a really nice night, when we get toned out to a single car accident with somebody trapped. We respond code 3 with one city engine, Heavy rescues, and a ladder. When we arrive on scene as the same time as the first due, we see a guy on sitting on the sidewalk and a hole in the fence. We start talking to the PT who we realize is also the RP for the call. Hes fine and there was no cars involved, he was on his Vespa(little gas scooter) dodges a cat and jumped off the scooter before it went through the fence and down a 5ft drop. He explained that he called it the way he did so we get there quicker and be able to help him get back up on the wall. People get under my skin some days

[JimmyKid]

How 'bout this... Lady dropped her cat in sewer system through manhole. We get there, only to find a power company guy saying that he dropped his flashlight....