Call for help
- See also: Call For Help, a TV show on TechTV.
Below are ways to call for help in an emergency.
Remember that an emergency is a situation that poses an immediate threat to human life or property, though this may be different in some areas. Intentional false reports of an emergency are usually prosecuted as a crime.
Telephone
With any telephone, whether a wired telephone or wireless, anywhere in the world, call an emergency telephone number such as "911" (in North America) or 999 in the United Kingdom or "000" in Australia or "119" (in parts of Asia) or "112" in other parts of Europe. Failing this dial the operator (often by dialing "0") and state clearly that it is an emergency. Within the European Union and on GSM mobile phone networks 112 can be used in addition to any local emergency number.
When possible, it is recommended to use a wired telephone: the quality of the communication is better, and the call can be easily located (a call for help is useless when the rescue team does not know where to go).
Otherwise call anyone you can reach.
When you have the emergency service:
- introduce yourself;
- give the phone number from where you are calling; this will allow a call-back in case the communication is interrupted, or to ask for precisions; this can also help locating where you are;
- give the exact location of the event, including the name of the city, the name of the building, or on the road the number of the road, the direction of the lane...
- describe the situation: illness or accident, and in the later case, specific danger, number of casualties;
- when there are only a few casualties, the description of their general state (alert or unalert, breathing or not) and of the affection (physical trauma, disease...);
- the first aid actions already performed;
- answer the question, listen to the advices; never hang up first!.
Emergency call boxes
Some places are equipped with emergency call boxes, e.g. train stations or highways. In such a case, the use of these call boxes is the best solution: the call can be easily located, the person who answers the call knows perfectly knows the environment and will be able to guide the emergency services.
This particularly true on the road: a call on a cell phone without the location of the accident is useless, it is more efficient for a bystander to drive a few minutes to find an emergency call box.
Radio
If you have access to a radio -- any radio -- transmit the words "EMERGENCY EMERGENCY EMERGENCY" followed by your location and the nature of your emergency. If you are using a marine VHF radio set the channel to "16". If you are using a CB radio try setting the channel to either "9" (designated as an emergency channel) or "19" (used by truckers). If you have a selector dial on the radio (amateur or aircraft), set it to "121.5" or "243.0" Pause between transmissions to listen for answers.
Do not use the keyword "MAYDAY" unless you are aboard a vessel or aircraft which is in immediate danger of sinking or crashing! You may endanger the lives of emergency responders tens or hundreds of miles away if you do, because helicopters and aircraft will respond to a mayday call with limited fuel supplies and risk crashing in order to pinpoint your location. This has caused fatal crashes several times in open ocean and in the Canadian and Alaskan outback.
In an emergency, remember the mnemonic "Why PATSI"
- Why are you calling
- What is your Position (as best known)
- Altitude (if you are in an aircraft, on a mountain, and so on)
- Track (what direction are you headed in, or are you stationary)
- Speed (how fast are you going)
- Intentions (what you are going to do, and what kind of help you need)
Making contact
You may contact a person hundreds of miles away who is not familiar with your area. Be prepared to give your location. In an urban area give a street address, nearby business or cross streets. In a rural area give a highway number and exit, map or GPS coordinates if you have time, or the route from your location to the nearest landmark.
Also be prepared to state the nature of your emergency. You will be asked many questions, some of which may seem irrelevant. Answer them and stay on the line until you are released. You may be given advice on how to proceed depending on the capabilities of the person or dispatch center you are speaking to.
Wilderness emergency signals
Other distress signals are primarily for use in rural or isolated areas, or in the wilderness. These include "SOS" or anything in groups or triangles of three -- markers, gunshots, fires etc. Survival training includes ground to air signals that can be used to signal passing aircraft with flares, mirrors or marks made on the ground or snow. Again, only use these signals in an actual emergency and destroy them when you are rescued. Pilots will take extreme risks to locate and report what they believe to be an emergency signal from the ground.
