DILG probes 33 911 call operators

MANILA, Philippines — Thirty-three personnel of the Unified 911 System are under investigation over the alleged delay in response to an emergency call involving a 71-year-old man who died of a heart attack in Taguig.

Francis Fajardo, head of the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG)’s Emergency 911, said 33 telecommunicators were on duty when the distress call was received on Aug. 15.

Fajardo said they want to validate the statement of Basty Askri, who was behind the viral online post, that he heard people laughing on the other end of the line when he made the emergency call.

The telephone operator who received Askri’s call is among those being investigated, according to Fajardo.

“The employee remains on duty, but he already gave a statement,” Fajardo said.

Authorities are investigating if the noise heard by Askri on the other end of the line originated from Taguig’s command center during a three-way call.

Askri called the 911 hotline for medical assistance for Omar Askri, whom he identified as his father.

Omar died of a heart attack in a hospital and was buried in accordance with Muslim traditions.

DILG Undersecretary for public safety Jed Patrick Mabilog said verification with the chairman of Barangay Maharlika Village showed that Askri is Omar’s nephew.

Askri treated Omar as his father.

While the 911 system has geolocation capability, Fajardo said the feature is not yet perfect.

“We’re still working out perfect geolocation, but there are instances that we are able to locate,” he said.

With an average of 17,000 calls daily, the DILG is eyeing to hire more call operators for the 911 hotline.