Creshanda Williams, 43, formerly worked as an operator for the Houston Emergency Center 911. She is, however, currently facing charges from people who claim she hung up on their calls during emergencies.
Williams has now been charged with two counts of interference with an emergency telephone call, “a class A misdemeanor that carries a punishment of up to a year in jail and a $4,000 fine for each count upon conviction,” according to a Click2Houston report.
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Caller Buster Pendley said Williams hung up on him when he called 911. The emergency? His wife collapsed when a blood clot moved to her lungs.
“She was gasping and I could feel her heart beating out of her chest, but I couldn’t get a pulse,” Pendley recalled. HBe said he administered CPR with one hand while using the other to call 911.
“The 911 operator answered the phone, and she said, ‘This is Crenshanda, may I help you?‘ Wife’s passed out I need an ambulance,” Pendley said. “She said OK, and she hangs up on me.”
Fortunately, Pendley made a second call and an ambulance soon arrived. Sharon Stephens’ life was saved but she still gets mad about the incident.
“I was furious cause he didn’t tell me what happened, cause I would have, I mean I would have gotten from my hospital bed and gone to 911 and find out who did that to me,” she said.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qlfo8TTtka8
An investigation conducted by managers revealed that Williams had been involved in thousands of “short calls,” their term for calls that lasted 20 seconds or less, between October 2015 to March 2016.
When questioned about the incidents, Williams told the police “that she often hangs up on calls that have not been connected because she did not want to talk to anyone at that time.”
Williams has since been arrested and has been scheduled to appear in court soon.
When Should You Call 911?
According to 911.gov, an emergency is any situation that “requires immediate assistance from the police, fire department or ambulance.”
The website also tells us that examples of emergencies include:
• A fire
• A crime, especially if in progress
• A car crash, especially if someone is injured
• A medical emergency, especially symptoms that require immediate medical attention