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"When should I use 911?"
Although it's a simple
question, many have asked, "I want to speak to the police department,
but I don't think I have an emergency. Who do I call?" Whenever in
doubt, call 911.
911 services for Thurston County are centralized at CAPCOM located in
Olympia. CAPCOM provides all police and fire communication for the local
government agencies in Thurston County, receiving calls for service and
dispatching police, fire and emergency medical aid.
A “Call Receiver” who will ask the nature of your emergency will answer
your call to 911. To gain as many details as quickly as possible, the call
receiver asks many questions, which are specifically utilized to obtain
needed information so that the appropriate emergency response can be
dispatched to you quickly and safely.
The call receiver may ask you to stay on the line. If you are excited, they
will try to calm you. Your experience may involve a loved one, or be
happening right before your eyes, which makes it doubly important for the
call receiver to be very
deliberate and detailed as possible. They are not seeing what you are
seeing. The call receiver is entering your answers into a computer that has
already identified the address you are calling from through the
"E-911" system. Often, at the same time, the Dispatcher is
giving that information to emergency workers, and they are on the way to
your location before you have completed your discussion with the
Call Receiver.
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