HAGERSTOWN, MD News (8/23/2023) – Radio Free Hub City would like to give a huge shout-out to the Washington County Department of Emergency Services. Yesterday, faced with technical difficulties, the fine men and women that work to keep Washington County residents safe went above and beyond to ensure that nobody in need of emergency services went unanswered. Mr. Robert McCoy, Director of Washington County Communications, graciously explained the situation.
Originally reported as an outage, the situation on Tuesday, August 22, 2023 was an issue that many residents may occasionally face with their personal phone services. When citizens placed a call to 9-11, they experienced a brief moment of silence as their call connected to the correct 9-11 landline. Callers that stayed on the line were connected to an operator, but the silence may have caused others to think they experienced an error and needed to disconnect. Thinking quickly, Emergency Services placed a call back to any caller that had disconnected to ensure that no call for help went unanswered. We are happy to report that no caller in need of help went unanswered.
The problem was not at the Washington County Emergency Services, but at Motorola. This error in the call chain also affected our neighbors in Anne Arundel County. Mr. McCoy tells us that Motorola was able to switch Washington County 9-11 calls to a different internal call chain, and residents should not anticipate any further issues. The problem lasted less than two hours, but it must have been rather stressful for the Emergency Communications employees. They buckled down and went above and beyond to make sure residents were not ignored or unanswered in time of need.
We appreciate the prompt update, with the details of the situation. Transparency of this kind helps snuff out panic and misinformation. Radio Free Hub City strives to keep readers and viewers abreast of situations that may affect the public, and it is much easier to keep everyone informed with open communication from the people “in the know.”
Thank you, Washington County Emergency Services! Job well done!
Article by “BB” Boring, Hagerstown, MD
“With years of experience writing ‘bad news’, I’m pleased to announce I will be writing the important local news about which I’m truly passionate for my beloved local radio station and news outlet, Radio Free Hub City!“
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