Philadelphia's Emergency Center Doubling Staff This Weekend
By Kristen Johanson
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - With massive crowds taking over Philadelphia this weekend during the Papal visit, fire and police dispatch will be ready and waiting.
Philadelphia Police Sergeant Greg Masi says emergency response teams will be on segways, bikes and on foot so they can get to a specific location fast, and take the person in trouble out to a main road artery:
"Certain streets will be open for pedestrian traffic. Others will be off limits, just for emergency vehicles to access, just to get into that area and do what they have to do and get out."
Masi says they have even taken steps in bridge the communication with international visitors:
"We have a language line service here, so even if a call comes into 9-1-1 and we can't identify that language, it's immediately transferred to our language line service and they will actually interpret for us what that person wants."
And if you notice someone or something that seems out of place, he says just call 9-1-1:
"Let us investigate that. It may just be something part of the norm, but we would rather be over cautious. We have enough people on the street, that can get there quickly, and can investigate that object or person."
The dispatch team will be doubled to handle the massive crowd.