Crank Call or Just very dumb?

[Antrogod80]

I work at a very large chain store I will not classify which one but I have a really great story that happen a few days ago I was on the Register at 6 am doing nothing but just zoning the area and making sure everything was clean. No customers. I hear a phone ring at Customer service and no one else was their to answer it so out of boredom I pick it up. (The caller sounded like an old women)

Me- Hello thanks for calling ____ how may I assist you?
SC- I need an emergency appointment my mom is leaking pus and blood from under her eye I need to get her in asap!
Me-.... uh man you've called ___- you must have the wrong number?
SC- COME ON! Can I come in today like in the next hour or so we really need to see whats wrong?
Me- I'm sorry man but we can't do anything as this is not a doctors office.
Me - (sigh)!!! UGH! CLICK

Confused as I could be I walk back to my register and within 25 seconds I hear the phone ring again.


Me- Hello Thanks for Calling ____ how may I help you?
SC- My MOM IS leaking blood from under her eye we need to come in now!
Me- Sorry man you are dialing the wrong number this is ___ we don't do anything like that.
SC- (now yelling) COME ON ! THIS IS AN EMERGENCY WE NEED TO SEE WHATS WRONG!
Me- Mam I'm going to hang up now because you evidentally need to contact someone who can help you.

I hung up the phone in disbelief. I take about 10 steps and I hear the phone ring again.

SC- YES I need to get an appointment for my mom she is having discharge from her eye!
Me- MAM, this is not any kind of doctor office you will need to check your number because you aren't doing anything but calling ____
SC- IM DIALING THE RIGHT NUMBER I KNOW IT I NEED HELP NOW WHEN CAN I BRING HER IN?
Me- I'm sorry but please check the number and try to.(CLICK)

This time I turn around in shock and see one of my managers. The asked me what was going on and I explained to them about 90 seconds after the last call. The phone rang again and my manager picked it up. Believe it or not it was the same Women asking about getting an appointment my manager told her not to call back because it was interrupting business and told her to check the number again.

Finally that was the last call but I really have no idea if someone was that stupid or someone was trying a very weird prank.

[Aethian]

Redial is not that ladies friend.

[EvilEmpryss]

My vote is for stupidity, perhaps exacerbated by panic.

The caller needed to call 911 or head to the nearest ER. Loss of life, limb, or eyesight, that's what the ER is there for!

[Sapphire Silk]

My vote is for stupidity, perhaps exacerbated by panic.

The caller needed to call 911 or head to the nearest ER. Loss of life, limb, or eyesight, that's what the ER is there for!

And had the caller actually dialed the correct number and gotten her family doctor, the office would have told them exactly that: go to the ER.

[DGoddessChardonnay]

And had the caller actually dialed the correct number and gotten her family doctor, the office would have told them exactly that: go to the ER.

Exactly. That's what 911 is supposed to be for.

I can understand the woman being in a panic over her mom (I've had emergencies with my Mom as well) but at least I have the sense to pick up the phone and dial 9-1-1 and tell the dispatcher what's going on, where we are (which they can pull up on their screen if we're calling from our land line phone) and go from there.

It's called "keeping a cool head as best you can". It works wonders, believe it or not.

[MoonCat]

And if someone tells you three times in a row that you're dialing the wrong number, then you grab the phone book and find the right one. You don't keep insisting that you "know" you have the right number. Actually, you do that after the first time they tell you that you dialed wrong.

[Mytical]

What little faith I have in humans says that it was a prank, hopefully somebody is not that dense in an emergency situation. I guess you never know though...

[bendertiger]

Actually, when they call up, best to say 'Sure, bring her in'. They might be calling your number (which is probably a wrong one) but how are they going to match it up to your address if they don't have it?

Worst case, they rock up to your business and you escort them out, best case, they turn up where they need to get help from. Just think of it as your helping Darwin's evolution theory work.

[Racket_Man]

I got into a strange situation with phone numbers at one paper manufactoring plant we deliver to.

they have secure access on most of the doors and we have to call a certain phone number either from the plant phone (in a box outside the door ) or from a cell phone to let them know we are at the main door waiting to be let in.

every time I try and dial the number from the plant phone I get the local casino's front desk. if I dial the EXACT same number from my cell phone I get the plant's office. the two are in NO WAY connected

[bendertiger]

The phone inside the plant is incorrectly wired/set-up. Get a tech to look into it

[dalesys]

The phone inside the plant is incorrectly wired/set-up. Get a tech to look into it

Or the keypad is damaged/malfunctioning. I've had phones that would (for example) dial a '2' when '8' was pressed.

[Andara Bledin]

every time I try and dial the number from the plant phone I get the local casino's front desk. if I dial the EXACT same number from my cell phone I get the plant's office. the two are in NO WAY connected

Can you try dialing your cell phone from that phone? That would be an easy way to rule out a problem with the phone itself. If it's not a malfunction within the phone itself, then it's a local switching error.

I ran into an issue once where I couldn't call a customer because a local switch was set up wrong so all calls going through it to the exchange I needed were being misrouted. Called the operator to have her dial for me, which worked fine, since she was behind a different switch.

^-.-^

[MoonCat]

Some of my co-workers found that when they dialed out, customers' Caller ID would display the name of a well-known financial firm in no way connected to our company. The phone company was told but it was never fixed.

[Geek King]

What little faith I have in humans says that it was a prank, hopefully somebody is not that dense in an emergency situation. I guess you never know though...

People can get really strange when faced with an actual emergency, particularly when it involves a loved one. They actually warned us about that in Red Cross emergency first aid training. One of the EMS guys teaching had actually been attacked by one of the victim's sons while delivering a defibulator shock because he had to undress the woman to apply the shock pads. I'm told the son apologized later.