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911, what’s your emergency?” That question can be answered in dozens of harrowing ways. Perhaps there’s someone breaking into your home, maybe you were just in a terrible car accident, or you’re watching a loved one have what you can only assume is a heart attack. Nobody ever wants to have to dial 911.

Well, most people don’t want to. But apparently, there are some individuals out there who will call this number for issues that are anything but an emergency. 911 operators have been discussing the most ridiculous reasons they’ve ever been called on Reddit, so we’ve gathered a list of their stories below. From cooking questions to confusion about quick dial buttons, these tales are great reminders to never waste law enforcement’s time. Enjoy scrolling through, and be sure to upvote the stories about callers that you would have simply hung up on!

#1

Young 911 operator with headset, focused on answering dumb non-emergency calls in a busy communication center. Had an elderly lady in SC low country call and she was afraid someone had put a “root” on her, kinda like voodoo. Some white powder like flour had appeared on her porch and she didn’t know what to do. I asked her if she had a straw broom. She did. I told her to get the broom and a dustpan, walk backward out the door and to the mysterious powder, sweep it I to the dust pan and back up to the left side of her porch, throw the powder out over her left shoulder, dust the broom off well on the porch rail and that was that. She did it and was happy.

sassafrasssam , Yan Krukau/Pexels Report

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    #2

    This will be piled in comments, but it's still stuck with me for my entire life. When I was younger, my mother was a paramedic supervisor. The dispatch desk was pretty much handled by the dispatcher - and whomever was closest to the phone. Pretty laid back environment. The 911 operator would transfer and relay the calls to the person answering the phone at the ambulance station. I would randomly answer often while I was there hanging out, just to feel important. I answered one day, and this guy said he got the wrong number. Now, the same phone was used to business lines and emergency transfers, so you had to pay attention to what light turned on when the phone rang. When I answered this man's call, he called the business line. He told me it was an accident. I misunderstood and thought said there HAD BEEN an accident. I immediately handed the phone to my mom so she could adult. My mom spoke to him for what seemed like hours. Turns out, the man was calling his daughter whom he hadn't spoken to in years. He was calling to tell her goodbye because he was going to end his life. I don't know if my mom was amazing at her job, or if it was fate. But that man, as far as I know, is still alive to this day and credits that to dialing the wrong number.
    Not exactly a 911 call, but close.

    Miscumunicatiom Report

    glowworm2
    Community Member
    1 day ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Thank goodness his "wrong" number turned out to be the right one!

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    #3

    Aerial view of a parking lot with multiple cars parked and one car navigating between spaces, illustrating 911 operators' dumbest non-emergency calls. I have had hundreds of parking complaints come in via 911.

    My personal favorite, however. I had someone call 911 to complain about a city ordinance that their neighbor hadn't mowed their lawn. I had them call the non emergency number to report it. Which went to the person sitting next to me.

    I made them look up the number and call to be spiteful. They didn't know the non emergency number and 911 went to two people in the same room.

    The house in question with the unmowed lawn, belonged to an on duty police officer for that town. So we sent him to take the ordinance violation complaint from his neighbor on himself.

    whole_chocolate_milk , Pok Rie/Pexels Report

    Lee Gilliland
    Community Member
    Premium
    1 day ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    That was mean, spiteful and I love you.

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    #4

    Woman covering her mouth while making a phone call, illustrating 911 operators handling non-emergency calls. "I can't get this jar of peanut butter open and if I don't get the peanut butter in the feeder, the squirrels will be mad *maniacal laughter*"-frequent flier (mentally ill)

    "There's a HUGE FIRE! Oh my god, get the fire department here now." It was the full moon shining through trees.

    "Um, I let my parakeet out to get some air and now he's stuck in a tree..."-award winning event at the annual firefighter dinner for most entertaining call for service. Included gems such as "Unit 1400 on scene, no feathers showing from the outside, checking the area..." and "dispatch be advised, subject is a flight risk".

    Captain-No-Fun , pvproductions/Freepik Report

    glowworm2
    Community Member
    1 day ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    The peanut butter one is hilarious. So is the one with the parakeet.

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    #5

    20 year 911 Dispatcher and Supervisor here. Had a guy call and ask if the line was recorded, I assured him all our lines were recorded. He started to recite his last will and testement and then shot himself. All 911 recordings are legal documents so he just saved money on a lawyer giving his will over the phone.

    DonSeroka Report

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    #6

    911 Operators Share The 50 Dumbest Calls They Ever Received 6:30 Christmas morning. 9-1-1 goes off. "9-1-1. what's your emergency?"

    Breathless, panicky voice "How do I get the cranberry sauce out of the can without it coming out in chunks?"

    "Open the other end and slide it out on a plate."

    "OH! THANK YOU! You are brilliant!"


    I wasn't considered so brilliant once I had to dispatch an officer over there to educate her on proper 9-1-1 usage. Merry Christmas, here's your citation.

    malloryparker , RDNE Stock project/Pexels Report

    Snazzy Smurf
    Community Member
    17 hours ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    She had to learn that 911 isn't a be all customer service line.

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    #7

    Young girl holding a green phone receiver dialing, illustrating 911 operators handling non-emergency calls. Many, many years ago, (1962 or so)

    I managed to rotary dial the Ohio State Highway Patrol and tell them to come arrest my Mom because she wouldn't let me go outside and play in the rain.

    I was 4.

    big_d_usernametaken , Freepik Report

    Peeka_Mimi
    Community Member
    Premium
    1 day ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I called my Nany on my mom for changing Sesame Street to watch All My Children. This was in 1977 and I was 4yo.

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    #8

    Bright sun shining through clouds illustrating 911 operators sharing dumbest non-emergency calls received. Not an operator, but my now-ex boyfriend who called in.

    He usually worked a late shift, walking home about 2 am. This shift he got off work a few hours late...

    BF: I'd like to call and report a fire. [We live in a fire prone area and it was the season.]

    911: Where is it located sir?

    BF: On the hillside just East of [City].

    911: Can you be more specific? [_Typing away in the background._]

    BF: Yes, [gives a more detailed location]. Oh god, it's getting bigger! The whole top of the hill is on fire now!

    911: Stay calm sir, we're sending somebody out.

    BF: It's getting bigger! Doesn't anybody else see this?! It's lighting up the sky around it...it's huge! Oh god! Oh...oh, wait...

    911: Sir?

    BF: I am SO sorry...I'm not usually out this time of night, I just got off work late...that's, that's the sun...

    911: ...

    BF: I am so, so sorry for wasting your time, there is no fire, that's just the sun rising. Never mind. I'm really embarrassed...

    911: That's fine, Sir. I will cancel the call, thank you for calling.

    EDIT: Former boyfriend said I forgot a detail so I added it in.

    LunarBerries , Pixabay/Pexels Report

    Mike F
    Community Member
    1 day ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Forgot he smoked a fatty on the way home.

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    #9

    Young person smiling while talking on the phone, illustrating 911 operators handling dumb non-emergency calls. Back when I was in highschool, a group of boys were making prankcalls to emergency services.
    The lunch lady who had tolerated a bunch of stuff from them had enough and called the non emergency line to report them. Police arrived, fined them and the boys got detention for a month.

    I later learned that their parents were not amused and grounded them for the same month, and took all electronics so they couldn't communicate with each other outside of school. And the boys had to pay the fines with their own money, their parents wouldn't pay a single dime.

    At school every other student was disgusted by their behavior and ignored them completely. The rest of the year the boys were incredibly well behaved.

    DieHamsterMeid , Freepik Report

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    #10

    Not a dispatcher but I worked security at a college and fielded the calls as I did my rounds.

    The best story I have is a guy who called about a bobcat in front of the library. He called up out of breath and said there was a wild cat intimidating people so they could not enter or exit the building.

    I was fairly close so I started to run over. I asked if anyone was injured and he said no. I was expecting a group of people held up at the entrance by a huge cat hissing at everyone. I told him to keep away from it and stay on the line.



    When I got there I found a tabby cat perched on a bench.



    I verified the caller and the cat he called about. I went over to the cat with him and started pet him, he rolled over and let me scratch his belly.

    The guy was shocked and said "oh, someone has domesticated it."

    Yup. I smiled and walked away.

    miraclerandy Report

    Khavrinen
    Community Member
    1 day ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Someone has domesticated it. Yes -- several thousand years ago...

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    #11

    Package and mail delivery left on a doormat outside a closed front door, illustrating non-emergency situations. Guy called for a suspicious pkg on his porch. Cop comes out, picks it up, looks at it, then asks if he ordered anything from Amazon. Guy says “yes”. Cop hands him the pkg and says have a good day. Guy just says “sorry” and goes in the house.

    Tangboy50000 , Oxana Melis/Unsplash Report

    #12

    911 operator overwhelmed with a non-emergency call, holding phone and covering face in a busy office setting. My company has an emergency number for chemical/medical/facility emergencies, that forwards to my personal phone and rings an alarm that's probably guaranteed to raise me from the dead.

    A manager realized this *was* a direct line to my personal phone that I would not ignore under any circumstances, and started calling the emergency number to reach me when I was off from work with issues like "an app on my PC can't find the network, help me right now". I am not the company's IT support.

    Our director was extremely displeased with their poor judgement.

    ThadisJones , Anna Tarazevich/Pexels Report

    Riley Quinn
    Community Member
    1 hour ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I should hope so. I fully understand reaching certain qualified personnel for emergencies, but this idiot violated that with petty BS.

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    #13

    Not an operator; I'm a prosecutor. Guy lived in a rooming house that had a public area where all the residents could hang out. It had a microwave in it provided by the landlord. Guy called 911 around midnight one night *because the microwave wasn't there*. The conversation with the dispatcher went something like this:

    **Dispatcher:** "So... you called 911 because a microwave you don't even own is missing? Did you ask your landlord if he took it?"

    **Guy:** "Uh, no."

    **Dispatcher:** "Well, that's not an emergency, sir."

    **Guy:** "But I'm really hungry."

    Meanwhile, a person with an actual emergency had to be put on hold briefly because this guy was adamant that this was the worst thing to ever happen. The genius insisted that police officers be sent to his rooming house ASAP because of the missing microwave. Officers showed up--so they could cite him for improper use of 911.

    The guy pleaded Not Guilty and requested a *jury trial*. He represented himself. The jury was out 20 minutes before it announced its Guilty verdict.

    Shaydu Report

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    #14

    I was a 911 dispatcher for just under a year. Realized that it is NOT for me. A lot if respect for those peeps! This was in Gilbert, Arizona (if you know about this place this story shouldn't surprise you). The call came in from an elderly woman because there was a "black guy" at the park. I asked her what he was doing she said "Nothing, he's just sitting there." So I asked her what the problem was. Her response was "he shouldn't be there". I almost sent the cops to her place to pick her up as a mentally unstable person.

    banjoe86 Report

    Dane
    Community Member
    1 day ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I had a lady living in an affluent neighborhood complain of a person of color, walking down the road. "Do they appear too be in distress" - No - "they" just don't belong up here. "So, you are requesting I do a well-being check on this party, to ensure they do not help of some kind? YES! - she was so relieved to have an "out" for the self-realization of her obvious racism!

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    #15

    Elderly man looking concerned while talking on mobile phone, illustrating 911 operators handling non-emergency calls. My mum’s town will post police/911 activity in the newspaper. It’s so often not criminal activity, and when it is it’s usually teenagers checking car doors but not actually stealing anything.

    More often than anything else it’s bored, quietly racist, retirees calling whenever they see a brown person. Example: “Complained of strange woman entering neighbour’s home. No forced entry. Officers greeted by neighbour’s new housekeeper.”.

    BarbicideJar , Andrea Piacquadio/Pexels Report

    Sara Frazer
    Community Member
    1 day ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    -___- well hopefully these racist dumbàsses get shamed by being published

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    #16

    Roll of red tape lying among white packing peanuts, illustrating 911 operators dealing with dumb non-emergency calls. Oh dear god, time to shine. Had a lady trying to call an ambulance because she opened a package from Amazon at home and she was afraid that that her kid was about to have a major allergic reaction... From the packing Peanuts.... because the kid was allergic to peanuts, and when her kid mentioned what they were called, she freaked out.

    Random-Miser , RDNE Stock project/Pexels Report

    JL
    Community Member
    23 hours ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I hope the kid takes after dad.

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    #17

    Man in pajamas sitting on bed holding head in frustration, illustrating dumbest non-emergency 911 calls concept Not an 911 operator but I work in the ER and the amount of young men (typically) who come in after their first major hangover always has me laughing.

    To those who are angry or upset about this please know we can see the difference between alcohol poisoning and a bad hangover.

    Glad_Variant , Andrea Piacquadio/Pexels Report

    Bec
    Community Member
    1 day ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I'd rather they come in and not need it than not come in or bring someone in who needs it. I hate videos where people are completely wasted and passed out or out of it and people think it is funny - it's not, people die!

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    #18

    Young man standing in a bar with bottles in the background, illustrating 911 operators handling non-emergency calls. I don’t work for 911 but I used to work at a restaurant and we had a guy one time who called 911 because we refused to serve him alcohol. 1 he looked like he was 16 years old and didn’t have an ID. 2 he was already so drunk he couldn’t actually manage to sit on a barstool and not fall off.

    And we were fairly sure he drove there. One of our managers was actually on the phone calling the nonemergency police line to see if somebody could come pick him up and dump him in the drunk tank when this guy decides to call 911 that we won’t serve him liquor.

    Techsupportvictim , wavebreakmedia_micro/Freepik Report

    #19

    Gray and white cat with wide eyes resting in a basket, illustrating 911 operators sharing dumbest non-emergency calls. Someone called 911 because their cat looked “sad.” I didn’t know whether to cry or laugh.

    LiveArrival164 , Cats Coming/Pexels Report

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    #20

    Not a 911 operator, but a former EMT. We had a call for a guy with a toothache. At 3AM. On a Saturday. The guy stated that he'd been hurting for about three weeks, and no it wasn't getting any worse. He was insisting on going to the hospital no matter how much we discouraged him.

    Then he keeled over and went into cardiac arrest. Not so stupid anymore.

    anon Report

    Peeka_Mimi
    Community Member
    Premium
    1 day ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    A tooth infection is nothing to sneeze at.

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    #21

    Not a dispatcher but when I was in EMS we were dispatched to a psych call. When we got there this lady was standing out side her house ready to go to the hospital. On the way to the hospital I was talking to her and trying to get her vitals when she told me there was nothing wrong with her that she heard a family member was in the hospital and needed a ride, so she called 911. Cops met us at the hospital for her.

    Crimson_Leader Report

    LinkTheHylian
    Community Member
    11 hours ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    "Ma'am, this is only a taxi to the hospital when you're the one with the potential life-threatening issue."

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    #22

    Police 911 operator here for 15 years. The stories I have.

    * I've had someone call 911 to know how long to smoke a brisket.
    * I've had someone call 911 to ask what the fines for parking tickets are.
    * I've had someone call 911 to wish me a merry xmas when I was working at 3am on on Christmas Morning
    * I've had someone call 911 report that their trunk wasn't opening and they wanted to know what to do about it.
    * I've had someone call 911 in a rural community because a black dude was walking down the street and "we don't get their kind here".
    * I worked on 9/11. I had people call 911 for weeks after because there were "3 brown guys in a car and I thought you should know about it."
    * I've had someone call 911 because they were lonely. About 1,000 times.

    And many, many more.

    I've done this for a while. Do people over-use the system? Sure. But for the most part I'm happy with how our children are taught to only use 911 if it's a life or death emergency or if there's a crime in progress.

    Stepside79 Report

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    #23

    Man in yellow shirt covering face with hands, expressing frustration, related to 911 operators and non-emergency calls. My dad accidentally threw away the little card phones used to have where you'd write down what the quick dial buttons were for. So he decided to fill in a new one. Only issue is he didn't know what they were anymore.

    So he called them. One after the other.

    When he found the button for police, he got the 911 operator. Thinking quickly, he just hung up. They traced the call and sent the fire department, an ambulance, and two cop cars. My dad had to explain what he'd done. They laughed, told him to be more careful next time. No harm, no foul.

    Then he continued his efforts and found the button that connected to the fire department... Everyone was sent back and they were a little less amused.

    DaniFoxglove , Karola G/Pexels Report

    Jaya
    Community Member
    1 day ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    How incredibly safe is their city, if they have firefighters AND ambulance AND police officers who have so much excess time that they can go there just in case...

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    #24

    Full moon partially covered by dark clouds at night, illustrating eerie atmosphere for 911 operators and non-emergency calls. NZ has 111 operators that connect you to emergency services. I used to be a 111 operator and before are some of the dumbest things I've had

    * The moon is too big

    * Government spiders are in my ears again

    * The neighbour has recorded me coughing and has been playing it back to me for 24 hours on high

    * The people in my living room are watching coronation Street and I don't like it (plot twist! She was the only one home and had left the tv on)

    * I can't turn my shower off

    * DEEEEZ NUUUTS! (More times than I can count)

    * Everyone is driving at me and I don't like it (plot twist! He was driving the motorhome ON THE WRONG SIDE OF THE ROAD!!).

    bananatotheface , Subhasish Khan/Pexels Report

    glowworm2
    Community Member
    1 day ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I am face palming on the DEEEZ NUUUTS! one.

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    #25

    Me: "911 this line is recorded, what is your emergency?"

    Caller: "hi, um I don't know if this counts, but four days ago I noticed a Uhual truck in my neighbor's driveway."

    Me: "okay?"

    Caller: "Well the two guys looked really suspicious. They were walking around the house like they didn't belong there."

    Me: "Four days ago?"

    Caller: "it's been bothering me because my neighbors have been on vacation and no one should be there."

    Me: ......"okay we'll take a look."

    The entire house had been ransacked. All the valuables were gone. Too much time had passed for the local pawn shops to have the items because they know what is stolen and needs to be moved quickly. LPT: if something doesn't seem right don't ever second guess calling the cops immediately. If the operator gives you attitude, make a complaint.

    anon Report

    Mike F
    Community Member
    1 day ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Even if my washing machine is telling me to file bankruptcy? 😂

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    #26

    Close-up of a police car roof with blue flashing lights, related to 911 operators and non-emergency calls. Not a 911 operator but I was a campus police officer at an expensive private university.

    I got dispatched to a call of a man unloading boxes from his car in a parking garage. I was extremely confused and called our dispatch center on my personal phone to try to get more details. Turns out someone had seen a black man unloading boxes from his car, and baselessly suggested that the car was stolen. I just drove around the parking garage for a minute and cleared the call.

    Goodeyesniper98 , Pixabay/Pexels Report

    Janet Sparrow
    Community Member
    1 day ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    It’s really interesting how where you live affects this type of observation. I’m white and I’ve lived in Oakland, California for 40 years. We are the most integrated city in the country. If I called the police for every black person, I saw unloading their car, they would be here every minute. Just all in a day work for us.

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    #27

    "How far down is it snowing?" All the way to the ground, now get the f**k off my emergency line!

    And my personal favorite, exact quote:
    "My washing machine is telling me to file for bankruptcy." This was a confused elderly lady so it was actually a little sad, but I'm including it because it left me completely speechless at the time. I think my response was, "I... you... what?"

    QueenCoyote Report

    ƒιѕн
    Community Member
    21 hours ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Maybe the washing machine is wifi connected and it can see your bank account...

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    #28

    Not on operator but once someone called cops on me for 'leaving an unattended bag' in the park by our house.
    Thing was, it was in a town of less than 1000 people. Tiny park. I was there the whole time, I set it on the table while I played with my young kids. The entire park is visible from any direction. I was never more than 100 ft from my sons diaper bag and the cops came and seemed really confused when they saw me and asked if it was my bag. I was, like, yeah?
    Then they told me why they came and I was floored. They were annoyed with whoever called and left without further questioning.

    apathetic_take Report

    #29

    Elderly man with glasses holding a phone to his ear, portraying a 911 operator receiving non-emergency calls. Every year our local police put out a list of dumb calls. Every year people call 911 because their garbage wasn’t picked up, or their internet/tv aren’t working. 🤔.

    chewblekka , Andrea Piacquadio/Pexels Report

    More Information
    Community Member
    1 day ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    "But my internet is out, this IS an emergency!!"

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    #30

    Young boy holding a phone to his ear, illustrating 911 operators handling dumbest non-emergency calls they've received. I once got a call from 911, "do you have a child with an emergency"? The dispatcher was being professional, but I could tell she was trying not to laugh. I say one moment as I walk upstairs to interrogate my then 5-year-old.

    He loved trucks. I'd given him a video with emergency vehicles; firetrucks, ambulances, police cars. I guess they thought this was a good place to advertise "hey kids, call 911 (if you have an emergency)". Such a convincing message, he called.

    I asked why. His answer: my neck hurts.

    RhythmTimeDivision , Freepik Report

    V
    Community Member
    20 hours ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    TBF that can be an emergency in a 4 year old. It's one of the symptoms of meningitis.

    #31

    Police car with flashing lights parked near other vehicles, illustrating 911 operators handling non-emergency calls. My dad grew up in a small town. One year while back home visiting his mom he forgot some laundry in her dryer and left for the airport. She called the police, and they actually showed up to collect the laundry then pulled my dad over on the highway and delivered it to him.

    Emotional-Power-7242 , Erik Mclean/Pexels Report

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    #32

    I have been in the 911 biz for over 22 years. If a caller starts the call with "I swear I'm not crazy" then you need to buckle up for some insanity. A guy started a call with those words after escaping from his apartment and running to the closest 7-11. He swore that his roommates were turning into giant crabs. The was going to show the officers that they were currently in giant cocoons transforming. As you might expect he was tripping balls.

    erczilla Report

    Laserleader
    Community Member
    22 hours ago (edited) Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I wonder if he was at a sleepover where they were all in sleeping bags.

    #33

    9-1-1 dispatcher/supervisor for 5+ years here.

    We get a ton of misdials because some genius at Verizon decided it would be a good idea to have phone numbers that start with "991-"

    Had a woman call because her "baby" wasn't breathing, so we gave her instructions to do CPR. Medics got there and found her doing CPR on her dog.

    Had another woman call saying her cat was stuck in a tree. I just knew she wanted the fire department to come save the cat, so I got my "that's only in movies/TV" speech ready. Then she said "...so my husband climbed up to get the cat and now he's stuck too.".

    arjayim Report

    Pandaodboredem22
    Community Member
    22 hours ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    991 (in the USA) used to be the code to dial out of our work phones before we switched from PoTS to VoIP, I was paranoid everytime I dialed out.

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    #34

    Glass of milk and a bottle on a wooden table, illustrating 911 operators sharing the dumbest non-emergency calls received. My dad told me about multiple ridiculous 911 calls during his time as a paramedic. One of the most ridiculous was a woman called for “being out of milk” and that she needed them to get some for her. Happened twice with the same woman. She didn’t have dementia as they initially suspected, turns out she was just super entitled.

    TheJinxedPhoenix , Charlotte May/Pexels Report

    Geoffrey Scott
    Community Member
    12 hours ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    We have an adult foster care house across from the Middle School. After the 3rd b**b threat, it was determined she just liked watching the pretty lights. Wife of the local police chief was the manager of the C-Store she used the pay phone to call them in at.

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    #35

    White powder spilled on a dark textured surface representing a scene related to 911 operators and non-emergency calls. Firefighter friend years ago sent on a call where a family reported white powder on their table.

    I think he said they thought it was anthrax. Crew quickly located the source of the "anthrax"...opened box of powdered donuts.

    Altitudedog , Eva Bronzini/Pexels Report

    Roxy222uk
    Community Member
    13 hours ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Why on earth would your first thought be ‘it must be anthrax’??

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    #36

    When I was a kid I called 911 and yelled: "NAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH SYYBENNNYAHHHHHHHHHH BADAGEESEEEEBABAOOOOHHHHHHHH" into the phone. The Lion King had just come out and I thought it was hilarious. After the third or fourth time they sent a police officer to the house and he gave me a stern talking to. My mom was pretty embarrassed.

    way_fairer Report

    HangryHangryHippo
    Community Member
    19 hours ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Who else without getting to the part of "the Lion king" already knew and even read it while singing the lyrics? 🤣

    #37

    I had a guy call 911 just because he wanted to see fire trucks and ambulances with lights and sirens. He miscalculated. There was a cop too...and he was not amused. Dude spent the night in jail.

    the_Blind_Samurai Report

    Oxford Ranch
    Community Member
    Premium
    11 hours ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Oh c**p!!! I bet he seen the lights!!

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    #38

    Person wearing high-waisted light blue jeans and a red and white patterned top, illustrating 911 operators dumbest non-emergency calls. Paramedic here,

    Once we had a young woman call 911 around 2am saying that her legs were turning blue. Turns out she had worn a new pair of jeans to the club that night.

    Zealousideal_Bug7634 , Bianca/Pexels Report

    Sara Frazer
    Community Member
    1 day ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Do people really not wash new clothes before wearing them???!

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    #39

    I'm not a 911 operator but I heard someone dialed 911 to request a mugshot of her to be removed from the internet, she got charged for misuse of 911 and had a new mugshot.

    NinjaHDD Report

    #40

    Once at the hotel I used to work for, a guest called 911 intending to reach me at the front desk. The 911 Operator called me back saying likely the woman was a moron but asked me to go check out the room anyway. I did and the woman kept saying the print on the phone said to dial 911, which is correct but it also says to do so in an emergency. It further says to dial 0 to reach the front desk, both of which should be pretty much basic for anyone who has spent any time at all in the US.

    The best part was that I could maintain my professional helpfulness and still got to see her husband just disgusted with her stupidity.

    filthyruh Report

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    #41

    I was a paramedic, worse was the woman calling for us to transport her with the flu. Her reason, since she's on Medicare it costs nothing to call an ambulance but about $10 for a taxi. In the middle of transport, had alittle girl stop breathing right next to our station. Took the next closest unit about 10 minutes to get there when it would have taken us less than a minute. Yeah, I didn't last long in that field.

    ATXweirdobrew Report

    Dane
    Community Member
    1 day ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    To the OP - I understand. I dispatched for over a decade - I had plenty of fire trucks and police cars but never enough ambulances, and nothing pi$$ed me off more than having to send EMS on a BS broke toe/bloody nose/toothache call, then get another call in the same area 10 mins later for a heart attack/stroke/airway obstruction knowing the response time would now be 10-15 mins longer than it should have been. Thank goodness for Fire Dept First Responders that could hopefully stabilize the patient until EMS could arrive.

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    #42

    Close-up of a hand lifting a slice of pepperoni pizza from a box, related to 911 operators and non-emergency calls. Had a drunk person call to report he was being harassed. Truth was..... He was being arrested by our officers for throwing pizza at people. All I heard in the background was one of my officers saying to him "that better not be our dispatcher on the phone" followed by some muffled talking and my officer taking the phone and saying "he will be taking a ride with us now" and hung up.

    Still laugh about it to this day.



    Also had a drunk woman call 911 because she couldn't remember her phone pass code.

    tkokilroy , Polina Tankilevitch/Pexels Report

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    #43

    Deer standing in green grass in a field, illustrating unexpected subjects related to 911 operators and non-emergency calls. Caller: A deer just swam across the river behind my house.

    Me: Okay?

    Caller: Well I am worried it might be cold.

    Me:.......Well there is nothing we can do about a deer being cold. Didn't it run off after swinning the river?

    Caller: Yes.

    Me: Well ma'am it's a wild animal and I'd guess it's going to be fine.

    Caller: ok.

    NodePoker , Jim Fawns/Pexels Report

    Dane
    Community Member
    1 day ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Caller - "There is a a cat stuck in a tree!" Dispatcher - "Have you ever seen a cat skeleton in a tree? - Pretty sure he will be OK"

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    #44

    Four rolls of white toilet paper arranged closely, illustrating 911 operators receiving dumb non-emergency calls. We had a squad that called in for non transport because the caller had pooped and couldn't wipe. So they called 911 to have them wipe their bum. *blink*.

    Galatheria , Arturo Añez./Pexels Report

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    #45

    McDonald's drive thru sign under clear sky with palm tree, illustrating unexpected 911 operators non-emergency calls. My aunt was at 911 for 30+ years in Florida. Lots of stories - one night, a lady called from the McDonald's drive-thru because they were out of chicken nuggets.

    TXpheonix , Caroline Cagnin/Pexels Report

    Sara Frazer
    Community Member
    1 day ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Oh no, end of the world!!!!/s -seriously if this place in Florida is like any other American suburb there will be another McD's a mile away.

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    #46

    I'm in the UK where it's 999, but essentially the same thing. I didn't work there for very long, but I remember a really drunk lady calling up from a bar on a Sunday afternoon to tell me she couldn't find her coat.

    When I told her it wasn't an emergency she went crazy at me.

    anon Report

    #47

    If you want an opposite story kind of, once I called the police non-emergency line because I heard gunshots outside of my (very Canadian, very suburban) house. The officer took my report and then said, “… well, should this ever happen again I’d like to encourage you to call 911 and not the reporting desk.”

    My husband and I also spent fifteen plus minutes debating if we should call or not, and the officer had questions about that too.

    kennyfuckenpowerz Report

    Sue User
    Community Member
    23 hours ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I was outside cleaning. Cop car stops and ask if I heard gunshots. No. After he left, I went back to beating my rug. Took about 30 seconds to realize it sorta sounded like gunfire.

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    #48

    Close-up of 911 operator wearing headset and holding microphone, handling non-emergency calls with focus. Bad dream. Cut myself shaving. I cant get my car into the driveway, will you park it for me?

    CrumbGuzzler5000 , Yan Krukau/Pexels Report

    #49

    Paramedic here.

    I had a guy who picked his wart at 3am and it was bleeding.

    That's it. That's the story.

    phoenix25 Report

    Khavrinen
    Community Member
    18 hours ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    "So put on a f'ing band-aid, and let us get back to the real emergencies."

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    #50

    Worked at a Level 1 trauma center.
    We had a guy come in with his wife after demanding that an ambulance transport him to the hospital. He was less than two blocks away. All he had was a broken finger.

    Another time, we got a call for a major trauma, single vehicle collision with the median or something like that reported two patients. First one rolls in at a reasonable time. Then we stand around waiting for the second dude. Ends up showing up 20-30 minutes later. Turns out he started arguing with the medics cause he wanted one last cigarette before he went to the hospital.

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    LinkTheHylian
    Community Member
    11 hours ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    "I want a cigarette!" "Sir, you've been in a car accident. You may have a punctured lung." "Well then the smoke'll get out and I ain't gonna get no lung cancer! Now beat it!"

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    Note: this post originally had 73 images. It’s been shortened to the top 50 images based on user votes.

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