Dialing 911 from cell versus landline affects call route

  • Published
  • By Jeffrey Roberts
  • 96th Civil Engineer Squdron
Eglin is a little piece of paradise enjoyed by thousands of military personnel, civil service employees and contractors.

Amongst many of Eglin's characteristics making it one of the most unique military installations, to include its impressive 724 square miles of land and award-winning environmental initiatives, is its 911 emergency line - and it's a distinction everyone should be aware of.

If you call 911 from a mobile device, your call will be routed to the nearest county emergency dispatch at one of the three neighboring counties of Santa Rosa, Okaloosa or Walton County. When this occurs, tell the dispatcher who answers that you are on Eglin and need to be transferred to the base's emergency dispatch. They will automatically connect you to the Eglin Fire Alarm Communications Center.

By contrast, if you call 911 from hard wired base line, also known as a landline located on the installation, your call will automatically be routed to Eglin's FACC, and the base's emergency services personnel will handle the emergency directly.

Though both options work, the least amount of time you have to spend calling in an emergency leads to the quickest response time from us. Saving seconds may seem inconsequential, but sometimes, seconds can make all the difference.

Hopefully, you will never need to use this information, but rest assured, if there's trouble in paradise, we will be there.