Frequently Asked Questions
Question: I'm interested in employment at Mason-Oceana 911. How do I apply?
Answer: Watch the Help Wanted section of newspapers and online media local to here. At a minimum, we advertise in Oceana's Herald Journal, the Ludington Daily News, Oceana County Press and Mason County Press. New hires are typically part-time only jobs and ads are run as the need presents itself. Full-time dispatching positions are typically filled from the pool of part-time employees. Mason-Oceana 911 is an equal opportunity employer.
Question: If you already have my name and address information when I dial 911, why do you ask it again?
Answer: Our ANI/ALI (automatic number index/automatic location index) information is provided by the phone company. As much as they strive for 100% accuracy, discrepancies exist from time to time. Verifying vital information such as address (where we need to go) and phone number (if we need to call back for some reason) are pieces of information that are critical to ensure the most accurate response and part of our procedure is to verify our ANI/ALI data on 911 calls.
Question: The dispatcher told me that my ANI/ALI information was incorrect. How do I get it fixed?
Answer: You should contact your phone company as soon as possible to ensure that the discrepancy is corrected. When you call, tell your phone company that you dialed 911 and the ANI/ALI information given to 911 was incorrect.
Question: If I have an emergency and dial 911 from my cellular or wireless phone, will you be able to see my location?
Answer: If your phone is 'Phase II' compliant, we should be able to determine the general vicinity of where you are. When you place a call, your location is determined by your cellular provider who in turn passes the coordinates to 911. If the coordinates are not received, the only information that we will have are the coordinates of the cellular tower that your phone placed the call through. The only way to be sure that your phone is compliant is to do a test call. If you would like to perform a test call, please call our non-emergency number and let the dispatcher know that you would like to dial 911 from your mobile phone to see if it is Phase II compliant. The dispatcher will need to know your cell phone number so have that ready. When the dispatcher tells you to do so, hang up and dial 911.
Answer: Watch the Help Wanted section of newspapers and online media local to here. At a minimum, we advertise in Oceana's Herald Journal, the Ludington Daily News, Oceana County Press and Mason County Press. New hires are typically part-time only jobs and ads are run as the need presents itself. Full-time dispatching positions are typically filled from the pool of part-time employees. Mason-Oceana 911 is an equal opportunity employer.
Question: If you already have my name and address information when I dial 911, why do you ask it again?
Answer: Our ANI/ALI (automatic number index/automatic location index) information is provided by the phone company. As much as they strive for 100% accuracy, discrepancies exist from time to time. Verifying vital information such as address (where we need to go) and phone number (if we need to call back for some reason) are pieces of information that are critical to ensure the most accurate response and part of our procedure is to verify our ANI/ALI data on 911 calls.
Question: The dispatcher told me that my ANI/ALI information was incorrect. How do I get it fixed?
Answer: You should contact your phone company as soon as possible to ensure that the discrepancy is corrected. When you call, tell your phone company that you dialed 911 and the ANI/ALI information given to 911 was incorrect.
Question: If I have an emergency and dial 911 from my cellular or wireless phone, will you be able to see my location?
Answer: If your phone is 'Phase II' compliant, we should be able to determine the general vicinity of where you are. When you place a call, your location is determined by your cellular provider who in turn passes the coordinates to 911. If the coordinates are not received, the only information that we will have are the coordinates of the cellular tower that your phone placed the call through. The only way to be sure that your phone is compliant is to do a test call. If you would like to perform a test call, please call our non-emergency number and let the dispatcher know that you would like to dial 911 from your mobile phone to see if it is Phase II compliant. The dispatcher will need to know your cell phone number so have that ready. When the dispatcher tells you to do so, hang up and dial 911.