The woman who reported a swerving, out-of-control truck with no
visible driver on a rural road north of Gilroy didn’t do everything
perfectly, but she was talking to a Gilroy emergency dispatcher who
clearly should have done better.
The woman who reported a swerving, out-of-control truck with no visible driver on a rural road north of Gilroy didn’t do everything perfectly, but she was talking to a Gilroy emergency dispatcher who clearly should have done better.
The key question is: Did the dispatcher actually send out an emergency call – as he said he did – to the scene after receiving the call?
At this point, there’s no evidence to support that contention, leading us to believe that a mistake was made.
It turns out that a well-known citizen, Mr. William Shoichi Iwanaga, was driving the truck last week and that he had apparently suffered a heart attack or stroke and lost control of the vehicle.
A report of a truck careening out of control across a rural road should cause an experienced dispatcher to quickly recognize the likelihood that a serious situation exists.
The question that will likely go forever unanswered is whether Mr. Iwanaga could have been saved had emergency personnel responded immediately rather than more than an hour later when the husband of the original caller for help drove by the scene and called 911.
The woman who made the original call should have stayed on the scene until emergency personnel arrived and, instead of calling 411, should have called 911. But the truth is she was properly directed to a local emergency dispatcher in Gilroy who should have handled the situation and dispatched emergency personnel directly.
Though there wasn’t another vehicle involved in a crash and no injuries were readily apparent, a careening, reportedly driverless car warrants a prompt response.
Assistant Police Chief Lanny Brown told reporter Eric Leins that the Gilroy Police Department has launched a formal investigation. That’s exactly the right call. This isn’t a witch hunt, it’s a step-by-step process to determine exactly what happened. The facts will be examined and perhaps some important changes in procedure will be recommended.
It could very well be that this case of a call for help that went unheeded for more than an hour is one of those messy situations caused by human error. The dispatcher could have simply forgotten to transfer the call. Or it could be that there’s some technical breakdown possibility.
Once armed with the facts and the testimony from the dispatcher, a course of action will be determined. Is the dispatcher fit for duty? Is there an equipment problem? Is a change in procedure required?
The report issued by the Gilroy Police Department will need to be thorough. It will undergo scrutiny within City Hall and without.
Many who listen to this tape might be struck, as we were, by the uncommonly informal conversation between the dispatcher and the woman who called for help. The dispatcher never imparted a sense of urgency, but perhaps that is good technique.
What’s important is that this incident be thoroughly examined and that changes, if necessary, are made to guard against a similar occurrence. Public safety is about protecting and helping citizens. Everyone wants just that. It didn’t happen in this situation, and we all need to understand why.
