Prince George RCMP are urging those who call the 911 emergency line to refrain from abandoning their calls after police were sent to a report of a man wielding a handgun that turned out to be something much more harmless.
The incident occurred Thursday afternoon when police received a 911 hang-up call from a home in the Miworth area about 20 kilometres outside city limits shortly before 3 p.m.
Operators immediately called back, as police were dispatched at a high rate of speed, said Prince George RCMP Cpl. Craig Douglass, and a woman at the home replied that a man was in the driveway with a loaded nine millimetre handgun.
The man turned out to be a tow truck driver holding an air compressor gun who had been called at her request to fix a flat tire.
In light of the incident, Douglass urged 911 callers to stay on the line.
"The police will do everything they can to help those in need and in the absence of information, must assume the worst case scenario," he said. "Information is vital for officers to make the best informed decisions and the best way to help officers is to stay on the phone and provide as much detail as possible."
