Prince George's County Revamps Non-Emergency Hotline

BOWIE, Md. (AP) -- Officials in one Maryland suburb have overhauled their nonemergency hotline so 911 operators could tend to emergency calls quicker.

Prince George's County 911 operators say that since the changes they are answering emergency phone calls faster.

The Washington Examiner reports that operators at the county's 911 call center in Bowie, bogged down by trivial calls, had been answering phone calls at a slower pace than required by state law.

Residents must call a different number for matters that aren't emergencies, but operators are required to answer both 911 calls and non-emergency calls.

So, officials made adjustments to the nonemergency line by creating an automated menu to direct callers to the police, fire department and various other county agencies better suited to handle their requests.

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