119 - what's my emergency?

i was just listening to 'all things considered' on npr. i love that show. i would like to have the guy who narrates the program read me bedtime stories. but i digress ...

tonight, there was a story about the reverse 911 communication system and evacuations from the wildfires a month ago. it was orderly, easy. i understand, though, from the report, that the system didn't work quite as well as everyone first thought. there are a few reasons - one of which had to do with my mother's first reaction when she heard the phrase 'reverse 911.' she thought she should dial 1-1-9 and ask them what her emergency was. the truly strange thing is ... she wasn't the only one. apparently a lot of people tried to do the same thing.

i'm surprised anyone got out alive.