A hurricane is coming in, and there is a mandatory evacuation happening on a thin stretch of a vulnerable coastal town. I am directing traffic coming out of the area when, suddenly, a woman driving an SUV comes up, trying to get back in.

It is already very windy, and the rain is coming down heavily, so I shout at her to make myself heard even standing close to her window.

Me: “Turn around, ma’am! This is a mandatory evacuation!”

Driver: “What’s going on?! I’m trying to get home!”

Me: “Do you live in [Town Up Ahead]?”

Driver: “Yes! Now let me through!”

Me: “Ma’am, no one is allowed this way due to a mandatory evacuation. Do you have anyone at home waiting for you?”

Driver: “No, but I have someone coming to repair my dishwasher!”

Me: “I don’t think they’ll be keeping that appointment, ma’am.”

Driver: “No! I made an appointment last week, and they will be honoring it! I told them I would complain if they didn’t!”

Me: “I can totally see that, ma’am.”

Driver: “What is that supposed to mean?”

Me: “It means you’re going to have to make that complaint because no one is going this way until the storm passes.” 

Driver: *Shouting over the raging winds and rains* “What storm?”

I work at a rural fire station, and while most of our services are directed via emergency services (911), we do operate a station line for the local community to ask questions. I take one of these calls.

Caller: “You need to come fill up my pool.”

Me: “Uh, ma’am, we do not do that. We’re a fire department.”

Caller: “I know who I’m calling! Who else am I supposed to call to fill up my pool?”

Me: “I’m not totally sure, ma’am, but once again, we are a fire department. Our engines use the water for emergencies, not for pools.”

Caller: “Well, my taxes pay your salaries and vehicles, so you need to come fill up my pool!”

Me: “I’m sorry, but we cannot do that. Have a good day, ma’am.”

Caller: “But you’re the ones with the water trucks!”

Me: *Click*

Me: “911, what’s your emergency?”

Caller: “I’ve been robbed!”

Me: “Okay, ma’am. Can you please give me the details?”

Caller: “I went to the bank and their ATMs aren’t working! They’re withholding my money! My money!”

Me: “So, no one has taken any money away from you?”

Caller: “My money is in that bank, and they’re not giving it to me!”

Me: “Ma’am, that is not an emergency for 911. Please take it up with the bank.”

Caller: “It is an emergency! They don’t open until 8:30, and I need that cash now!”

Me: “Ma’am, the only reason you would call 911 about your bank is if it was being robbed. You are not being robbed, and if you call again, you could be charged with taking up an emergency line for a non-emergency.”

Caller: “So, you’re saying that you’ll only come out to the bank is if it’s being robbed? Fine, I’ll call you back!” *Click*

Thankfully, we didn’t get any reports of a bank being robbed that morning.

CONTENT WARNING: Missing Child

When I was a kid, sixty years ago, my parents took us swimming at a pond where you had to pay to get in. I have no clue where it was other than in Connecticut.

Besides the pond, there was a playground. For some reason, this was not adjacent to the swimming area; you had to cross the parking lot and it was surrounded by woods. My parents stayed in the swimming area with my baby sister, while my brothers and I went to the playground.  

We had a great time, playing with kids, making friends, and just having fun. Eventually, my brothers and I tired of this and returned to our parents.

Unfortunately, everyone was out of the pond while it was “being cleaned.” They were using equipment I had never seen before, but it looked unpleasant. I had not heard of anyone cleaning a pond before, and certainly not while it was open. But I was maybe in second or third grade. What did I know about pond maintenance?

Eventually, they let everyone back in the water.

What had happened was a kid went missing and was presumed drowned. They were dredging the pond for his remains.

He showed up maybe half an hour after we had returned to the pond area.

He had been one of our playmates at the playground, and apparently, it was easier to dredge the pond than it was to check for him there.

His poor mom!

I’m a volunteer firefighter and first responder. When I receive an alert, I HAVE to respond if at all possible, no matter where I am or what I am doing. My state has laws that generally protect emergency services volunteers from facing punishment from their employers if they miss work due to an emergency, as long as proper procedures are followed.

I have a regular job as a custodian at a factory. The factory gets new managers after being bought out by a larger company, and while things seem to go relatively smoothly at first, it becomes more and more apparent that the new managers are mostly concerned with the factory’s profit margin at the expense of employee well-being.

One day, I receive an alert while at work. I clean up my equipment as quickly as possible, tell a coworker who knows that I’m a firefighter, clock out, and leave for the emergency.

I’m gone from work for about two hours, and I return after the emergency is taken care of to resume my shift. When I get to the office to clock in, my new manager is waiting for me.

Manager: “Where were you?”

Me: “I had to respond to an emergency. I’m a volunteer firefighter and first responder with [Department], and we had a call. Everything is clear now, so I’m back to finish out my shift.”

Manager: “You can’t be taking off without permission. I’m going to have to issue a written warning.”

Me: “You realize that’s against [State] law, right?”

Manager: “Don’t play games with me. You left work without permission. That’s not allowed, and it warrants a written warning.”

Me: “I’m not going to sign it, but I will be going to Human Resources about this.”

Manager: *Scoffing* “You do that. See what they say. Meanwhile, I’m filing that you refused to sign a written warning for leaving work without permission.”

I did go to Human Resources, who very quickly recognized the potential blowback from my manager’s threats. The HR representative assured me that everything would be taken care of, so I went back to work. While I was gathering my equipment, I heard my manager being called to HR over the factory’s loudspeaker system. HR chewed him out REALLY thoroughly about it and threatened him with a few state labor violations if he carried through with any form of punishment against me.

The new manager and I both still work at the factory, but he no longer speaks to me. He also doesn’t try to interfere if I get called out due to an emergency alert, so it seems like he at least learned that lesson.