Ramsey Plans to Fire 7 Over Delayed 911 Calls
D.C. Police Chief Charles H. Ramsey said yesterday that he intends to fire five police officers and two civilian employees because their failures allowed the first 911 calls about a fatal house fire in Dupont Circle to be placed on hold.</br></br>Acting after weeks of complaints from neighborhood residents, Ramsey said he has recommended the firing of five police operators who were on duty but were "unplugged" instead of answering 911 calls when the fire began Jan. 15. He also moved to fire two of the operators' direct supervisors, one of whom is a police officer, and urged that two more supervisors face sanctions.</br></br>The chief's actions cover four of the five supervisors and five of 13 operators working at the city's emergency communications center the morning of the fire -- meaning that, in his view, half the police staff handling 911 calls during that shift made mistakes.</br></br>"It is a very serious issue, and I think we're taking it very seriously," Ramsey said yesterday. He said that 911 is "literally a lifeline to the community, and people need to take it seriously. You never know when that call is going to come in."</br></br>Ramsey's announcement marked another step in retreat by city officials, who at first denied that problems with 911 had delayed their response to the predawn fire that killed Christopher Smith, 24. Since then, they have acknowledged that neither the police department nor the fire department had enough operators answering 911 calls and determined that the first three people who called about the fire were put on hold.