Which statement about a cellular phone calling 911 is correct?

Which statement about a cellular phone calling 911 is correct?

• A. The call is routed to a national center, resulting in considerable delay in their receipt by the local telecommunication center.
• B. Enhanced 911 system features eliminate the problem of locating the caller.
• C. Automatic prioritization
• D. Numerous calls for the same incident may overload the communications center.

Answer: (D)

The main concept here is that 911 call centers have limited capacity, and a surge of calls for the same incident can quickly saturate the system. When many people report the same event, the available phone lines, trunks, consoles, and dispatchers can become busy or overwhelmed, which slows down call handling, extends wait times, and delays dispatch decisions. That real-world constraint is exactly why the statement about numerous calls potentially overloading the communications center is the best answer—it directly reflects how overload occurs and why it can impede response. Enhanced 911 improves the information available about callers, but it doesn’t magically eliminate locating errors or gaps—location data can still be imperfect, especially indoors or in certain areas. Routing calls to a national center isn’t how 911 typically operates, since the system is designed to route to the appropriate local public safety answering point to minimize delay. The concept of automatic prioritization is vague and doesn’t address the concrete issue of capacity and overload the center faces during a major incident.

The main concept here is that 911 call centers have limited capacity, and a surge of calls for the same incident can quickly saturate the system. When many people report the same event, the available phone lines, trunks, consoles, and dispatchers can become busy or overwhelmed, which slows down call handling, extends wait times, and delays dispatch decisions. That real-world constraint is exactly why the statement about numerous calls potentially overloading the communications center is the best answer—it directly reflects how overload occurs and why it can impede response.

Enhanced 911 improves the information available about callers, but it doesn’t magically eliminate locating errors or gaps—location data can still be imperfect, especially indoors or in certain areas. Routing calls to a national center isn’t how 911 typically operates, since the system is designed to route to the appropriate local public safety answering point to minimize delay. The concept of automatic prioritization is vague and doesn’t address the concrete issue of capacity and overload the center faces during a major incident.