Emergencies 911 is a telephone number used by countries around the world as a central emergency number. It's one of the most well-known phone numbers in the world, partly because we've seen it in hundreds of Hollywood movies, when someone called the police, or because of an emergency.
Today it may seem trivial to use a single number for all multi-city / country emergencies, but getting it up and running wasn't easy and took time.
The use of the number 911 was born in the United States in 1968.
The first emergency number used as a point of contact for any emergency was used in England in 1937. Through the number 999 they could communicate with the fire brigade, the police and the emergency medical services from anywhere in the country.
The first call to 911 was made on February 16, 1968 in Haleyville, Alabama.
It is not known exactly why that number was chosen. Some versions indicate that a computer was used to select it, others simply because it was easy to dial the number on old telephones or also because the 911 number had not previously been used like any zip code / area / telephone or any other type.
Today, it's as simple as dialing 911. With these three numbers, you can reach the fire department, the police, and the ambulance. When you call 911, the emergency center operator will immediately connect you to the person you need.
Whoever calls will be attended by an operator who will request certain information in order to intervene, the exact place where the emergency is, the street, the location and the height. If the caller witnesses an illegal act, they must give the most accurate description of the people involved, how they dressed, their ages, how they moved, among others.
Meanwhile, in the case of accidents such as fires or road accidents, it should be reported if there are fatalities, serious injuries and any other information of interest to know what kind of help to send to the scene.
As we noted, the United States has been using it for many years and it is also the emergency number for other countries such as Argentina, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Peru, Uruguay, Costa Rica, Canada, the Dominican Republic, among others.
