911 dispatcher accused of ordering McDonald's when dealing with home invasion call: ‘Mhmm…McGriddle'
Dylan Johnson called 911 on Valentine's Day after his wife feared that someone was trying to break into their home. After trying three different lines, he finally got a hold of a dispatcher, who Johnson says he overheard ordering breakfast.
'My wife called me while I was at work about 9:30 and said someone was snooping around the house, knocking on the doors and banging on windows and stuff,' Johnson told WDBJ7.
He then rang Chatham County's non-emergency line before ringing 911 three times.
'I was panicking. My wife was home alone with my five-month-old daughter…. I was coming home not knowing what I was going to come home to,' Johnson said.
After trying to get in contact with an emergency dispatcher for six minutes, according to his call log reviewed by the outlet, he could hear that dispatcher pick up — and then he could hear her apparently ordering a McGriddle.
'Mhmm… McGriddle… *coughs* I'm sorry, what?' the dispatcher reportedly said three minutes into the call.
Johnson was shocked.
'I really couldn't believe it. If it didn't happen to me, I wouldn't believe that it had happened to someone else. That's how unbelievable it was,' he told the outlet.
By the time law enforcement showed up at his home, the suspicious person was gone, Johnson said.
Chatham County Commission Chairman Chester Ellis told WDBJ7 that the dispatcher's actions are now under review by her supervisors. After completing a review of Johnson's call, officials will submit a report to Ellis, who will then discuss it with the Board of Commissioners, he told the outlet.
The dispatcher involved in the incident has been disciplined, but its details are not known.
The Independent has reached out to Ellis for more information.
'That should never happen, okay? Your ordering breakfast should be different from answering a call. The two should never intertwine,' Ellis told WOTC.
Johnson said he was grateful the situation turned out to be OK, but stressed the need for change: 'When someone is calling 911, they need help. I want them to treat everything as an emergency as they should be.'
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