Don't Blame CFD
They aren't the ones asking for CPD assists on everything:
- I've been reading SCC since nearly the beginning, and this question has routinely popped up....
The average beat copper needs to understand that the great majority of the time that it is not a fire suppression company or ambulance on the street making the request.....
911 calls are answered by OEMC calltakers on the police side first, then if fire/ambo is needed they'll transfer the call to a fire calltaker.....
The PD calltaker typically stays on the line and waits for the fire calltaker to get the information....after the call is completed, the PD side will ususally ask if they want CPD to ride on the call....of course, the fire calltaker will want to CYA and say yes....
There has been many a time a car shows up and asks why we called, and other than a note with a CPD cross refenence number, we usually have no idea if you're coming or not...
I would hope that somewhere along the line that they would change the priority as it's dispatched on the PD side to indicate if the call came from a company that is on scene vs the CYA from the calltaker......
We know how much BS you respond to, and do not want to add to the chaos on your end.....vests or not......
The OEMC protocols are hopelessly outdated. We've said this time and time again - as have our readers, as have the CFD visitors, as have citizens who stumble in on occasion. 9-1-1 is sending out too many calls that don't require the police.
Some are caught by supervisors, but in this age of "sue everyone," and "liability!" we're still getting calls about junior won't go to school, somebody needs to be put out (evicted), burglaries discovered days later, suicidal pigeons in the roadway, etc. All these calls do is build on the backlog, and we've already beat the "manpower" thing to death. Help isn't coming, and the help that is here is stretched to the breaking point.
If some useless gold star wants to make some sort of impact on the Department that might actually do some good, revamp the 9-1-1 call taking. We're so far gone from OW Wilson's mantra "every call gets a police response." We need to start telling people, "Solve your own damn social problems" and streamline the 3-1-1 non-emergency system.
Some are caught by supervisors, but in this age of "sue everyone," and "liability!" we're still getting calls about junior won't go to school, somebody needs to be put out (evicted), burglaries discovered days later, suicidal pigeons in the roadway, etc. All these calls do is build on the backlog, and we've already beat the "manpower" thing to death. Help isn't coming, and the help that is here is stretched to the breaking point.
If some useless gold star wants to make some sort of impact on the Department that might actually do some good, revamp the 9-1-1 call taking. We're so far gone from OW Wilson's mantra "every call gets a police response." We need to start telling people, "Solve your own damn social problems" and streamline the 3-1-1 non-emergency system.
Labels: fire fighters, general
posted by SCC at 12:02 AM
39 Comments:
Thank u to the cfd person for explaining that. I've often wondered why the hell they request us to some of these calls, now I know.
Our text-based PCAD system was designed in what--the early 1980s? Let's move to a graphical and GPS-based system. Give officers a damn map of the streets to navigate, which is especially helpful to officers who have not worked in the neighborhood for years, which is what it takes to know every street, alley, park, dead-end and which direction they run.
Would that stop the 'suicidal pigeon in need of assistance' calls? Cool.
Absolutely....stream-line 911. Police are not supposed to be Social Butterflies nor Social Workers. They are the Law....to serve and protect. With over 2 million people in the City and only less than 10,000 sworn Officers.....its impossible to expect Police do more than the protecting portion. Rahm. Are you listening?
So glad you brought this up. The one that has been bothering me is "reckless driver" calls. Yes, it is important to the caller but totally worthless to a copper by the time the call is dispatched. JUST put it out on the air for any cops who MAY be in the area and leave it at that. Instead they assign it to a beat car who is too afraid (with good reason) to just blindly code it. Then you have a beat car down "looking" for a reckless driver who they know is LONG gone.
If we had Sgts with balls and ears, they would be coding that kind of nonsense before a car gets assigned. 19-SAM!
I'm a fire call taker. The policy on the fire side of OEMC is that all calls for EMS involving domestic batteries, car accidents, Psych, suspicious activity involving children (I dunno... he/she jus don' wanna wake up...) and the person down for the Unknown Cause (99% of the time some drunk or homeless person). Oh. All EMS calls that are responding to any CHA project. That's all but there's a lot of them. Lots. It isn't OEMC'a fault the police or fire call takers fault. Believe me. Myself and my colleagues hate requesting police and even sending out 50% of the calls we receive because majority of them are, in fact "the community" unable to manage the smallest aspect in their lives. Most of them. I can't speak much for the police side of OEMC but on the fire side we think about resource, wasting, fuel, wear and tear on the body, on the vehicle, maintenance, the risk putting the working police and medics in harms way for yet another asshole with too many beers in him/her laying curbside and so on and so on. We hate it. We don't want to waste anybody's time and our resources. However, these are the rules we have to follow because certain segments of Chicago are 95% of our customers and everything they get into revolves around dysfunction and chaos. So our hands our tied.
Be safe out there CPD. Again. We on the fire side of OEMC feel for you all and support you all. Know that we filter about 25% of the calls we receive (I need a Bambalances. I left my phone charger at St Bernard. I need a Bambalances to come git me and take me there so I can go git it....) and we do keep you in mind and hit the "CPD NOTIFIED" button only and I mean only if we absolutely must have to. It isn't OEMC. It's the needs of the people (folks) of "the commernity".
Did the boystown pidgeon make it out of the intersection alive?
Sometimes callers whip s__t up too, for maximum drama. EMS run on "I've fallen and I can't get up" becomes "police called to disturbance" for their own purposes -- like bullying, personal vendetta, or trying to preclude a lawsuit. Seen this several times.
That poor pigeon. I hope that officer was able to talk it out of traffic and into a mental health facility.
Good Band Name, Suicidal Pigeons...
There was a call last night in 008. Some guy was on his porch, jerking off, and he thought some kids may have seen him. So HE wanted to report it. What an absolute waste of time and resources. Why can't the call taker just say "No!"?
They why is OEMC working so much needed OT? They drain the budget and only the clouted can obtain employment there. Must be full of the 11th Ward Daley friends and family.
Good luck with that.
CFD doesn't do law enforcement,but many times having the CPD on the scene deters those that might want to interfere with their duties.Because the police are already on the street,they often get to the scene before CFD arrives.The CFD and the CPD have always supported each other in any way they could.Any working CFD a and CPD member knows this.The Politicians don't respond to 911 calls.
What's with the CFD comment "without a vest" you want a vest go out and get one. What isn't the city providing them free for you like the rest of your uniforms? I just received my "free" vest. Cost $100 co pay then the cover cost another $200. Don't get me wrong I'm happy "get behind the vest" program was started otherwise we would be spending $500 for the vest alone. It just bothers me that CFD is whining,again. All this shit in the media in the courts we have to deal with we really don't need to hear your whining over spending a couple of bucks if you feel like you need a vest.
And while the bosses are at it maybe it's time to get rid of beat tags... Tired of having to fall back on my kindergarten art skills every other day to make a beat tag when there are at least three extremely legible numbers on the car. Beat integrity after all is a thing of the past as we run around the entire district .
Ergo, the call takers aint worth a shit. When we worked the zones we'd tear that shit up.
Anyone can code a 19-S you don't need a supervisor. I did it all the time in 003. He took my keys! He took my link card and left. Offender gone, property related named offender. 19-S for 311 report.
PD calltakers dont ask fire if police are needed. Fire calltaker will say, see you there police, or ride with us police.
The Useless Gold Star created in part the OEMC mess. The Useless Gold Star appointees still preside over OEMC operations.
Don't fix it until it becomes known we're cheating the taxpayer.
Part of Huberman's dealings were false invoicing for equipment that was never installed, never received and the never transitioned to the new federally mandated First Responder Digital Frequencies post Septmber 11, 2001.
What will eventually happen is another low information, highly incompetent, no experience Gold Star will continue to drain the city.
As far as service calls being sorted , dispatcher drones hands are tied and what you have is a call center that routes calls circa 1938 Bell Systems.
The only thing better would be a LillyTomlin as Enestine at the switchboard, which actually was very efficient and understandable.
Clout has been going on at OEMC since the start in 1995. They come to take the test and most have a "letter of recommendation" from their alderperson or ward committee person. Strange, but they get the job. . .
You know what would remove a back log? If the fucking paramedics would remove the taser prongs like they are supposed to. They won't do it, the offender has to go the hospital and be observed for hours because the FD is taking some bullshit stand about being rousted out of their bed. Fire dickhead says "hey sarge, if you just pull them out yourself, you donts got to call us." No shit dumbfuck. Everything we do is on camera and if one of my officers is filmed removing a taser prong there is going to be a problem, because we don't have medical training, YOU DO. No dickhead, we are going to keep calling you and documenting when you don't do what you're supposed to.
While in Rogers park we were dispatched to help fire with a lady having a panic attack,.. How is that a combative person?
I see firemen all the time and I don't think we have any type of rivalry. I've always had a ton of respect for firefighters and you guys have always been so kind. Any time I've stopped into fire houses they've offered us food, to relax, etc. I don't want to run into burning buildings. I got it, I'd doesn't happen every day, but when it does, you guys are there and it takes brass balls in my opinion. I always go the extra mile to make sure CFD personnel are all good and that should always be our practice. I recall stories in the 90s of people robbing CFD medics. I've seen shitheads get pissed off, mouthy and close to attacking CFD because they think they're not doing a good enough job. It's so ignorant. So thanks for posting and explaining it and thank you for how nice you guys have always been. I'm fetal as hell but will always be there for CPD/CFD as a matter of principle.
How about two lazy coppers that 15P a non responsive 101 year old, went on the uniform adjustment for 1 1/2 hours, the job was reassigned to another beat car but the Sgt caught it on the radio and told the dispatcher to resend the original beat car. So the family waited like 2 hours before them lazy coppers came back to do the death investigation. Welcome to Rogers park unbelievable....
If we had Sgts with balls and ears, they would be coding that kind of nonsense before a car gets assigned. 19-SAM!
We're too busy cleaning up your shit shows.
I love when the principal of a school calls saying they're having trouble with a kid that doesn't want to listen. Do your fucking job and kick the little shit out of the school.
Seems to me there is some money to be made here. Make a reality show like "Cops!" only have them show these asinine 911 calls. There might be a problem, however, as it would only feature Nordic Americans.
The CFD call-taker above is correct, but there's even more to say about this.
The policies for when police go out don't in ANY way originate at the OEMC, or for that matter at the CFD. They come from your own brain trust in the police exempt ranks and always have. This has been true for decades and long before the OEMC was created, and long after it was created.
When the OEMC was first created in the 1990s some of you might recall that the priority system created by the CPD brass had burglar alarms as type 1 calls and Robbery just/occurred as type 2 calls, even if the robbery involved a gun and literally just occurred etc. This was from the CPD "leadership" of the time.
Its very convenient that nobody seems to know where this stuff comes from, but look no further than the same jackasses that show up in the rest of the stories here, i.e., the CPD leadership.
8/18/2016 04:37:00 AM, thanks for the well-written post.
I don't mind riding with fire. These are the guys I'm relying on if I get hurt or have a medical emergency. I think it's our duty to make sure they are safe while they are doing their job.
We need a dispatching facility for Pfather Pfakhir and the revrunds. They can attend to all of their people in distress, and keep the poleece out of the community. It is what the revrunds and the neighborhoods all want.
Better band name: Suicide Squab!
Anonymous said...
There was a call last night in 008. Some guy was on his porch, jerking off, and he thought some kids may have seen him. So HE wanted to report it. What an absolute waste of time and resources. Why can't the call taker just say "No!"?
8/18/2016 06:46:00 AM
now if that is not made for our own "keesing bandit" nothing elese is!
Blame "the community". They're responsible for 90% of 9-11 calls and majority of the time they need both police and EMS. Nobody calls 9-11 more than they do. When I work Main (north side) it's rare we need police for anything. People for the most part up there use EMS for the proper intention; true medical emergencies. When I work Englewood (south) it's like somebody said - Majority of the "community" unable to manage the slightest of their malfunctions. So. Sorry, CPD. It isn't us. It's them. As always.
Anonymous Anonymous said...
While in Rogers park we were dispatched to help fire with a lady having a panic attack,.. How is that a combative person?
8/18/2016 11:55:00 AM
Did you not read the part about 'mental'?
I had a Domestic Disturbance call on a 7 year old boy! Momma complained he wouldn't go to school. I talked to the kid and he said he wouldn't go to school because he was hungry and momma wouldn't feed him! Momma said she bought a box of cereal the week before and, get this, the kid ate it! Momma was nuts, low IQ and the kid had dirty clothes and was just hungry and retarded crack whore mother was pissed she had to buy another box of cereal.
So I called the hotline at DCFS and did a case report on child abuse. DCFS got a case on momma and decided everything was fine and closed the case. That was at age 7. When I saw the kid at age 12 he was full of gang tats and was finished with going to school etc.. That is how the west side and south side ghetto goes.
I am retired and always remember the 7 year old who had a mother calling the police on him because he ate all the cereal.
And Pfleger and the rest think the problem is with gun laws. I stopped carrying my little .380 pocket pistol and bought a S&W .44 magnum and a speedloader, just in case. I am moving out of Chicago next year, sayonara forever.
to Anonymous 8/18/2016 08:41:00 AM
Anonymous said...
What's with the CFD comment "without a vest" you want a vest go out and get one. What isn't the city providing them free for you like the rest of your uniforms? I just received my "free" vest. Cost $100 co pay then the cover cost another $200. Don't get me wrong I'm happy "get behind the vest" program was started otherwise we would be spending $500 for the vest alone. It just bothers me that CFD is whining,again. All this shit in the media in the courts we have to deal with we really don't need to hear your whining over spending a couple of bucks if you feel like you need a vest.
The body that SCC posted was a reply to this comment under a post a few days ago in which the commenter theorized that the increase in assist FD was because the medics wanted vests....CFD isn't whining...it all started with a question from the PD side.....comment below..
Slightly off-topic here, but did anyone notice CFD is now requesting CPD to ride on pretty much every call they get?
It used to be that they would request CPD to ride when there was a high potential for violence or some sort of police service might be necessary.
It seems the word has gone out that they will request police for every call, regardless of the circumstances.
In an ideal world, CFD having CPD backup on their calls is a great plan. In the world we live in, with constant backlogs, undermanned districts, and calltakers considering everything to be an emergency requiring police service, it's simply not possible for the police to ride with fire on every call.
It increases the backlogs, decreases safety of the officers and citizens, and does little to help the fire personnel in the vast majority of cases.
I assume it has something to do with medics wanting vests, which they probably should have. No vests, then they'll just have police protect them instead. Most of the time, fire is in and out before the backlogged police can respond, but the job still sits on the board, and the backlog continues. If fire RTQ, that job should disappear from the police side. Can't assist them if they're gone anyway. Just another thing I've noticed that contributes to the backlogs.
Anyone from CFD want to comment on this?
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