In December 2013 Kari Hunt Dunn took her 3 children to a hotel to meet with her estranged husband, Brad Dunn. When Dunn arrived, he allegedly attacked Kari and proceeded to assault her in the bathroom. During the attack, Kari’s 9 year old daughter attempted dial 911, unaware that she must dial 9 first to get an outside line. After several attempts, the child ran out into the hallway for help. Unfortunately that help arrived too late to save Ms. Dunn.
Kari’s father has started a petition to call for a law that would require hotels and other businesses to update their E911 systems to allow a person dialing 911 to reach a 911 operator. The National Emergency Number Association 
supports the petition and calls the changes long overdue. Government Affairs Director, Trey Forgety didn’t have concrete numbers but acknowledges that it is a problem they hear about regularly. Kari’s Law is still in the petition stages, but it highlights a very real barrier to emergency communication.
Given the recent violent events in our society, does your staff understand how to dial for help? It’s easy in an emergency situation for even an adult to become flustered. Struggling to remember the proper procedure to dial an outside line can delay help and might end in tragedy.
Hiscall strives, with every installation, to ensure 911 calls are connected directly to emergency personnel. Please contact Hiscall for an evaluation and programming changes if necessary to ensure your employees and guests can reach help in an emergency.
Don’t wait until something happens to make this simple change to your phone’s equipment and programming.
