A 3 month-old baby died after paramedics were delayed reaching him, when the mother dialed 911 in Sarasota (Fla.) last Saturday night and gave her street address as “Avenue” instead of “Street,” and EMS units were sent to the wrong city. Officials at the Sarasota County sheriff’s comm center acknowledge that dispatcher Kari Halpin did not ask the mother clarifying questions, but instead used the address the mother gave, and sent EMS units to Highland Ave. in nearby Englewood. Comm center procedures do not include asking 911 callers for the city of their address, sheriff’s officials confirmed. The family lives within 3 minutes of a fire station, but officials haven’t said if a quicker response would have saved the child. Read more about the incident and listen to the 911 call here, and also read about how the cellular part of the 911 call may have contributed to the situation here.
The address of the mother and her baby (top, north Sarasota) is about 27.6 miles from the location (bottom, city of Englewood) where emergency units were dispatched by the sheriff’s dispatcher.
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