Not just the kids playing with phones. . .

When you zone young people completely out of a community, you would think you would get a corresponding decrease in the number of hangup calls to 911. Kids are usually blamed for 911 false alarms, but... this item sheds new light on the national problem. This is a report taken directly from today's homeowner's bulletin. I quote:

A plea from the Pinal County Sheriff’s Department: Each year, the Department responds to hundreds of “911” hang-up calls and false alarm calls from SaddleBrooke. The cost of responding to these erroneous calls is in the thousands of dollars each year. It is also a dangerous situation since the patrol car responds with red lights and sirens, and this activity also takes the officers away from other work. For this reason, we have been asked to inform residents that should you accidentally dial “911,” you should stay on the line and simply express your regrets that you dialed the wrong number. If you inadvertently set off your house alarm, you should reset the alarm and then call the alarm company to let them know that everything is okay, so the alarm company can cancel the responding sheriff. Please note that this does not mean the sheriff’s department intends to ignore emergency calls, rather the many mistaken calls create an enormous cost and time burden on the department – and to taxpayers.

So, oldtimers, and this means you, Virgil and Stephen. Try to remember to stay on the line when you call 911..