Dialing 9-1-1 in an emergency can save your life! It connects you directly with a dispatcher who can send the police, fire or emergency medical help you need. But remember, 9-1-1 is to be used for life threatening emergencies or crimes in progress only, not for routine or non-emergency business.
9-1-1 was created to shave precious moments from the process of calling for emergency aid. You only need to dial three easily remembered numbers for help, instead of wasting time fumbling through the telephone book looking for the right number. Unfortunately, some people are calling the number for routine business, tying up critical phone lines which could cause a delay in getting help to someone in trouble.
When should you use 9-1-1? If your house is on fire, if someone is breaking into your house, or if someone in your family is badly hurt or seriously ill, the decision is clear, you should use the 9-1-1 number.
When shouldn't you use 9-1-1? Don't use 9-1-1 to conduct general business with any of the emergency services agencies. It is not a referral service for general information; don't use it to schedule a home security check, report power outages, or to ask questions about your ambulance bill. Use the following City of Salem phone numbers for routine and non-emergency business:
If you live outside of Salem, look for the non-emergency telephone numbers for your local emergency service providers in the white pages, or call information and ask for the "non-emergency" business number.
Use the following number to report problems and outages:
If you would like more detailed information about the proper use of 9-1-1, please contact the Marion County Sheriff's Office Dispatcht at 503-588-5032.