I tried to get some nonemergency information from the Pearl City Police Department and was directed to call 911. I just heard a news report that 911 operators are overstressed and that there aren't enough of them to work the regular load, so why are nonemergency calls being directed to 911 when someone could've just picked up a phone book (in my case) to help me out? 911 system in Hawaii
‘not overloaded’—so farWhen the 911 system was developed for Honolulu, it was intended that one number be used for all calls for emergencies or service, including all calls for police assistance, said William Chur, captain of HPD's communications division.
Despite the thousands of calls to 911 every year, "our 911 system is not overloaded," he said. "We do handle a lot of calls every year, but it's well within our capacity to handle all the calls that come through."
This is how the system works: If you have an emergency and call 911, calls are screened, then routed to either police, fire or ambulance service.
Calls for police help are routed to the police communications center, where there are dispatchers "serving as call takers, taking information," Chur said. "Sometimes that system gets overloaded ... and calls for routine service may end up in a queue."
However, HPD gets "very few complaints," maybe one, two or three a year, about people not being able to get through during an emergency, he said. Given the volume of calls, that's not considered bad, he said.
In 1996, of a total of 853,960 calls to 911, 661,441, or 77.5 percent, were for police services; 23,726, 2.8 percent, for fire; and 47,423, 5.6 percent, for ambulance.
Of the calls to police, 115,817 were calls "we considered of an emergency nature," Chur said, while 545,624 were more routine requests for police service.
By comparison, in 1995, there were a total of 915,970 911 calls: 715,083, or 78.1 percent, for police; 23,891, 2.6 percent, for fire; and 49,499, 5.4 percent, for ambulance. Of the police calls, 120,720 were deemed emergencies and 594,363 were routine.
"We certainly wouldn't rule out a nonemergency number if it is feasible or if we needed to have another number," Chur said. But a lot of factors would have to be considered, he said, including whether having two emergency numbers might cause confusion.
Regarding your experience in trying to get information, Chur said he can't really answer without knowing the details. But typically, a call to any station with a request for general information could be answered at that level, he said.
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To the city administration for destroying partially built sites behind three bus stops on Kuhio Avenue in order to rebuild them because "extra funds" were found. That's outrageous and a waste of money we don't have. - N.S. Auwe
To the city Parks Department. The answer to a complaint about sprinklers going off too early on the 4th of July was that the sprinklers are normally set for 11 p.m. That's too early not only on holidays, but any night. One a.m. would be a better time. Auwe
To Leo, Chad and Davet of Pacific Isle Delivery, who pushed my car to the side, then stayed with me and called their company dispatcher for a tow truck when my car stalled at 4:45 p.m. on July 29 on Nimitz near Waiakamilo Road. Mahalo also to my friends, Maddy Derby and Joyce Hiu, who noticed I was stalled and went all away round the block to make sure I was OK. - M.K. Mahalo
