TOLEDO, Ohio — From a young age, most of us were taught to dial 911 in case of emergencies. The program has been used nationally since 1968, alerting first responders to situations where someone has called for help.
On March 11, it may have saved a man's life here in Toledo.
Trent Morelock has been a 911 telecommunicator for a year and a half. On that day in mid-March, his training and instinct kicked in.
At 3:34 a.m., Morelock took a call from a man whose home was on fire.
"I'm in a wheelchair and I can't get out of the house and it's filling up with smoke," the man told Morelock.
The man was in the back of his home, struggling to breathe in the smoke.
"I'm gonna die," the man told Morelock during the call.
"Sir, sir can you hear me at all?" Morelock said, talking calmly, loud and clear. "Sir, where are you?"
The personnel for 911 are taught to keep talking to the person on the other end of the line. The caller may have 911 on speaker phone, or it may be loud enough to help guide first responders to the right part of the house in poor visibility.
At 3:37 a.m., just three minutes after the call, Toledo police arrived and rescued the man's wife in front of the house. First responders knew the man was in a wheelchair and trapped inside.
Then, the Toledo Fire & Rescue Department arrived with breathing devices and rushed inside to search for the man.
At 3:46 a.m., 12 minutes after the initial call, a rescue was made.
For his efforts on that 911 call, Morelock has been given an Inspire award in the dispatch center. He said he was just doing the job.
"It's above and beyond," Morelock said. "But it's just the job, getting help to people that need it."
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