Emergency 911

(Non-emergency, dial 716-549-3600). When emergency and non-emergency calls are received in the communications center, they are prioritized. Officers are dispatched to calls requiring an immediate response such as a life-threatening situation or a crime in progress before other calls for service.

The communications center also has a Telephone Device for the Deaf (TDD) that is used to assist hearing impaired callers.

Using 9-1-1

• Dial 9-1-1.
• Explain to the dispatcher what the emergency is.
• The dispatcher will ask you questions such as:
  – The location and nature of the emergency
  – Your name, address and telephone number
  – Descriptions of suspects including: sex, race, height, weight, age, clothing, weapons, and vehicles
• Stay on the line until the dispatcher tells you to hang up. The dispatcher may need more information or give you further instructions.

Never call 9-1-1 and just hang up. It is our policy to call back and attempt to verify if there is an emergency. If we can not verify to our satisfaction that everything is all right, our policy is to send police officers to the indicated address.

If you dial 9-1-1 from your cellular phone in Erie County, remember that the call will probably be routed to a police agency such as Buffalo Police, the State Police or the Erie County Sheriff’s Department. From there, the call will be transferred to the local police agency.

If you know the seven-digit number of the jurisdiction where you are reporting the incident, you can call that instead of 9-1-1.