SAN ANTONIO – San Antonio police said they’ve received 1,313 calls for social distancing-related violations since the city’s emergency declaration went into effect.
The problem, officials say, is that some of those calls came in through 911, which is a line that should only be used only for emergencies.
Doug Greene, a public information officer of the San Antonio Police Department, said while it is crucial to practice social distancing and abide by the city’s “Stay Home, Work Safe” order, you shouldn’t call 911 on those who don’t.
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“We want to remind people that 911 is for emergencies if you are in that immediate, dire need of the services,” Greene said. “When you call 911 for something that is very minute, it is kind of setting us back on trying to get resources to the people who really need it immediately.”
In some cases, calling 911 for non-emergencies could come with penalties, Greene said. On the other hand, Greene isn’t saying emergency declaration violations shouldn’t be reported at all.
“We do have the non-emergency number, which is 210-207-(7273), which we would prefer people to utilize,” Greene said.
For those who would like to keep track of the calls coming into officials about emergency declaration violations, click here.
