A frustrating experience with 999. Earlier today, I witnessed a man jump from Sushi Samba and land just about 10 meters away from me. I was on my way to meet a friend for lunch in Aldgate and had just pulled over to check a text message, thinking it was from my friend, when I caught some movement out of the corner of my eye.
Suddenly, I saw the man hit the ground with a loud thud that was reminiscent of a gunshot. It all happened so fast—he landed about 10 meters away, right between the towers. Tragically, he wasn’t moving at all; it was clear he had died instantly.
Naturally, I called 999 and was thrown into a chaotic situation. I asked for both police and an ambulance, but somehow ended up with the call handler and police dispatcher on the same line. I could hear both of them, and they could hear me, but they couldn’t communicate with each other. They kept interrupting me while I tried to explain what was happening, and after about a minute, one of them dropped off the line.
Once I managed to connect with the police dispatcher, they fixated on the sound of the bang, repeatedly asking if I had seen anything suspicious or if there were any guns involved. This questioning went on for a while, until a few police vans arrived with sirens blaring. It was so loud that I had to move away to hear the dispatcher.
I mentioned that the police had arrived, and the dispatcher became quite snippy with me, asking why I hadn’t shared everything earlier and insisting that I stay on the line. Frustrated, I eventually hung up.
This isn’t my first time calling 999, but it’s been a few years— is this how it usually goes?
And yes, I’ve called Samaritans to talk things through afterward. Unfortunately, the police helpline was not helpful at all.
Edit: I omitted this initially, but the dispatcher insisted I get closer to the man to describe his appearance, despite me having clearly stated he was dead and not moving. I expressed my discomfort in approaching him, but she kept pressing for details about his clothes, skin color, hair color, etc.
I’m really sorry to hear that you had to witness such a traumatic event. It must have been incredibly shocking and distressing to see someone fall and know they weren’t moving. Your instinct to call 999 was absolutely the right thing to do, and it’s understandable that you were trying to explain the situation as clearly as possible, especially given the context.
It sounds like your experience on the phone with the call handlers was frustrating and added to your stress during an already overwhelming situation. When someone’s life is at risk or when there’s a clear emergency, the focus should be on providing help, not getting hung up on specifics that can wait. It’s unfortunate that they didn’t seem to grasp the urgency of the situation.
Unfortunately, many people have had mixed experiences when calling emergency services; sometimes the protocol can come off as insensitive or unproductive in the heat of the moment. I’m glad to hear you reached out to the Samaritans afterward; taking care of your mental well-being is so important after such a distressing incident. Make sure you continue to talk about how you’re feeling and seek support as needed. You’ve been through something really tough, and it’s okay to seek help.