To report a potential life or property-threatening incident, dial 911. It may take up to 7 seconds before you will hear a ringing tone while your call is routed to our center – do not hang up and call back! Once your call is answered, tell us:

• The location where help is needed.
• The phone number you are calling from.
• What exactly is going on now.
• Your name.

The telecommunicator may ask questions to determine what kind of assistance to provide – these questions will ultimately allow us to help you or those in need. Depending on your problem, we may ask:

• For a description of your residence or property.
• If you are willing to help the person.
• Who else is nearby.
• A description of any persons or vehicles involved.
• Other questions related to the specific type of incident.

All full-time dispatch personnel are Emergency Medical Dispatch certified and are able to provide “pre-arrival instructions” to callers on everything from infant CPR to managing a seizure patient. Several children in St. Joseph County have been delivered by our staff using these techniques.

If you need help but are unable to speak dial 911 and leave the phone off the hook. If you’re calling from a non-cellular type phone, we most likely will get the address you are calling from and will dispatch the appropriate agency(s) based upon what we hear and the type of call history from your location.

Call our non-emergency number, (269) 467-4195, for things such as:

• Barking dogs, noise complaints or loud vehicles.
• VIN inspections (providing you have the necessary Secretary of State paperwork).
• Peace officer standby’s.
• Events that occurred more than 24 hours ago.