Nine-one-one is a three digit telephone number which
can provide the American public with direct access to a public safety
answering point (PSAP). In general, 9-1-1 is an emergency number
for any police, fire or medic.
How did the idea develop ?
Great Britain was the first country to establish a
universal emergency telephone number. Since 1937 any individual
in the United Kingdom has been able to dial 999, receive a prompt
response, and have his or her request for assistance (police, fire, ambulance)
quickly and efficiently directed to the proper agency. In developing
similar systems, Belgium has adopted 900 as its uniform emergency
number. Denmark
has provided 000, and in Sweden the caller dials 80 000. Several
of these systems are directed primarily toward the provision of emergency
medical services. Other countries which have provided three or
two-digit emergency number, either universally or for large population
segments, include West Germany; Caracas, Venezuela, which developed its
system in 1963 with the help of the United States; and Winnipeg, Canada,
where the system has been in service since 1959. Canada is currently
developing a national system utilizing 9-1-1 and Japan has implemented 1-1-9 throughout
their country.
In January of 1968, the American Telephone and Telegraph Company announced
that within its serving areas the digits 9-1-1 were available
for installation on a national scale as the single emergency telephone
number. Although numerous public safety officials and individuals
at various government organizational levels had long expressed keen interest
in the establishment of such a number, the AT&T announcement was
primarily prompted by the 1967 recommendation of The President's Commission
on Law Enforcement and Administration of Justice that "wherever
practical a single (police emergency) number should be established within
a metropolitan area and preferably over the entire United States".
Further stimulus toward the creation of a nationwide number was provided
by the Commission on Civil Disorders and Federal Communications Commission
which urged the telephone industry to provide a three-digit emergency
telephone number. These various recommendations had in turn received
impetus from growing public concern over the increase in crime, accidents,
and medical emergencies and from Federal Government awareness that current
emergency reporting methods were inadequate and that in a population
as large and as mobile as ours, a common emergency number made sense.
In response to these concerns, the Federal Government in March of 1973,
through the Office of Telecommunications Policy, Executive Office
of the President, issued National Policy Bulletin Number 73-1 endorsing
the concept of 9-1-1 and urging its nationwide implementation.
The choice of the specific number, 9-1-1, was based primarily
on cost factors, the comparative ease with which telephone company equipment
could be modified to accept the number and on other considerations which
indicated that the combination of the digits 9-1-1 would be easily
remembered and dialed by most persons.
The first 9-1-1 call in the United States came from Haleyville,
Alabama and was made by Alabama Speaker of the House, Rankin Fite on February
16, 1968 to Tom Bevill, a U.S. Representative.
9-1-1 in Fayette County
A 9-1-1 system is considered BASIC when a citizen dials 9-1-1, is routed
to the PSAP but no location information is provided to the answering
point.
A 9-1-1 system is considered ENHANCED when a citizen dials 911, is
routed to the PSAP and the caller's address and telephone number are
displayed on a computer screen for the dispatcher's reference. Wireless
or cellular calls do not provide address information. Fayette County
9-1-1 is equipped with an Enhanced 9-1-1 system.
