TAMI A WRONG CALL AT FIRST GLANCE QUICKLY TURNED OUT TO BE A CALL FOR HELP. LUCKILY FOR AN OHIO WOMAN-- HER 9-1-1 DISPATCHER WAS LISTENING VERY CAREFULLY. MICAELA MARSHALL REPORTS. Dispatcher: "Oregon 911." caller: "I would like to order a pizza at..." Dispatcher: "You called 911 to order a pizza?" caller: "Uh, Yeah, apartment..." Dispatcher: "This is the wrong number to call for a pizza." caller: "No no no... you're not understanding me." Dispatcher: "I'm getting you now." MICAELA: IN HIS 14 YEARS OF SERVICE... THIS IS A CALL OREGON DISPATCHER TIM TENEYCK HAS NEVER GOTTEN BEFORE. Tim Teneyck, 911 Dispatcher: "You see it on facebook but it's not something that anybody has ever been trained for. We're just trained to listen." MICAELA: HE SAYS DOMESTIC VIOLENCE CALLS ARE COMMON... BUT NOT LIKE THIS. Dispatcher: "Is the other guy still there?" caller: "Yep. I need a large pizza." Dispatcher: "All right. How about medical. You need medical?" caller: "No. With pepperoni." MICAELA: AFTER THIS EXCHANGE - TENEYCK ALERTED OFFICERS TO HURRY. Dispatcher: "Turn your sirens off before you get there. Caller ordered a pizza. And agreed with everything I said that there's domestic violence going on." MICAELA: TENEYCK SAYS HIS INTUITION THAT SOMETHING WASN'T RIGHT KICKED IN... WHICH TO HIM, REAFFIRMS HOW IMPORTANT LISTENING IS IN HIS LINE OF WORK. Dispatcher: "Thank you how can I help you?" Tim Teneyck: "Other dispatchers that I've talked to would not have picked up on this. They've told me they wouldn't have picked up on this." Chief Michael Navarre: "Excellent dispatch work on the part of our dispatcher. Some dispatchers may have hung up." MICAELA: OREGON POLICE CHIEF MICHAEL NAVARRE TOLD ME THAT ORDERING A PIZZA TO INDICATE DOMESTIC VIOLENCE IS SOMETHING HE'S NEVER HEARD OF. Chief Michael Navarre: "Not in all my years, not in my 42 years of law enforcement." MICAELA: BUT COMING UP WITH SOME KIND OF CODE TO ALERT 9-1-1 THAT YOU'RE IN TROUBLE IS THE RIGHT THING TO DO. THE CHIEF SAYS IF YOU EVER FIND YOURSELF IN A SIMILAR SITUATION... HERE'S WHAT YOU SHOULD DO: Chief Michael Navarre: "Somehow or another convey to that police dispatcher that you are in trouble. And this woman did that. She did that not with her words, but with the tone of her voice." MICAELA: THANKS TO THE QUICK THINKING OF BOTH THE CALLER AND THE DISPATCHER - THE ALLEGED ABUSER, SIMON LOPEZ, WAS ARRESTED AND LOCKED UP. Chief Michael Navarre: "He handled the call beautifully and it had a happy ending." TAMI THE VICTIM'S DAUGHTER SAYS WHEN SHE MADE THE CALL... SHE WAS HOPING TO KEEP THE PERSON HITTING HER MOM FROM RUNNING AWAY BEFORE POLICE GOT THERE. THE STRATEGY WORKED. TAMI THIS STORY IS A REMINDER, IF YOU OR ANYBODY YOU KNOW IS A VICTIM OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE, YOU CAN CONTACT THE ALLIANCE AGAINST FAMILY VIOLENCE AND SEXUAL ASSAULT AT 322-0931. YOU CAN ALSO CALL THE 24- HOUR CRISIS HOTLINE AT 327- 1091. OR YOU CAN CALL THE NATIONAL DOMESTIC VIOLENCE HOTLINE AT 1- 800-799-SAFE. IN CASE OF AN EMERGENCY, CALL 911. JIM YOU WON'T NEED A BEAN
On one hand, I'm glad he didn't hang up on her and turn this into yet another Emergency Services hangs up on someone who needed help story.
On the other hand, I really worry when something like this is treated like genius detective work, and especially when they talk about how other dispatchers wouldn't have picked up on it.
As a native Oregonian, I think it’s great that there’s a town called Oregon, Ohio...but the way they pronounce it makes my skin crawl
Give this man a headset!!
Great job by the dispatcher and smart move by that woman.
ITT: Dispatcher experts saying its not that hard to figure this out.
The idea comes from a Superbowl commercial
I bet the cops didn't show up with pizza though
Well then we need to train dispatchers better. Shouldn't rule #1 of dispatching be assume there's an emergency until proven otherwise? Even this dispatcher who did manage to figure it out took too long. You stated 911 on answer, they know it's 911. If you re-iterate it's 911 and they say 'yes', then treat it like it's an emergency, it's not rocket science.
All the call takers and dispatchers agree. I am the greatest 911 call operator there ever was. My intuition is unmatched. I could tell this woman was in trouble just by smell alone. My quick thinking has saved yet another poor soul. Even the police chief thinks I am the greatest
Edit: Please don't mistake me. I am thankful for this man's time as a 911 dispatcher and that he effectively handled the situation. I just found him absolutely hilarious in this video.