William J. Smith, Chief of Police
300 South Franklin St.
Holbrook, MA 02343
For Immediate Release
Thursday, April 4, 2019
Contact: Benjamin Paulin
Phone: 781-428-3299
Email: ben@jgpr.net
Holbrook Police Issue Guidelines in line with National 911 Education Month
HOLBROOK — April is National 911 Education Month. Holbrook Police Chief William Smith would like to ensure residents are prepared and able to access help during emergencies.
Around 240 million 911 calls are made in the U.S. each year. Public safety agencies around the country use 911 Education Month to conduct outreach to educate community members on 911 resources and best practices.
“911 is a vital service for residents to quickly and reliably report emergencies and receive help,” said Chief Smith. “911 Education Month allows us to make sure residents know when and how to use 911. In an emergency, seconds matter. Being knowledgeable and prepared can make all the difference.”
To ensure your family knows how to get help in an emergency, Chief Smith recommends following safety tips provided by the National Association of State 911 Administrators (NASNA):
Call If You Can, Text If You Can’t
Text-to-9-1-1 service is available in an increasing number of communities around the country, including Holbrook. The service benefits individuals (or persons) who are deaf, hard of hearing or in a situation where they cannot speak and make a voice call. However, a traditional voice call, if possible, is still the best way to reach emergency services.
Know Your Location
Wireless calls to 911 provide location information, but 911 call takers may need more specific information. Be prepared to provide detailed information on where you are so that help can get to you as quickly as possible.
Stay Calm and Don’t Hang Up
Until you are instructed to do otherwise, stay on the line so you can provide any necessary information to the 9-1-1 call taker. Even if you accidentally call 9-1-1, don’t hang up. Inform the call taker that you dialed accidentally and that there is no emergency.
NASNA works to save lives and improve emergency response by supporting a national 9-1-1 education and awareness effort to ensure the appropriate and responsible use of 9-1-1 resources. Additional 9-1-1 education materials are available at www.know911.org.
ABOUT NATIONAL 911 MONTH
In 2008, the United States Congress recognized April as National 9-1-1 Education Month, supporting the efforts of the National 9-1-1 Education Coalition to provide resources and materials to support public education about the optimal use of 911 services nationwide. (Know911.org)
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Source: nena.org