911 operator lectures drowning woman: 'This will teach you next time don't drive in the water'

[Demovictory9]

'This will teach you next time don't drive in the water': Horrifying audio reveals 911 dispatcher on her final shift lecturing a distraught woman for accidentally driving into flood waters as she begged for help while trapped in her car and DROWNING

Debra Stevens, 47, drowned on August 24 when she drove into flood waters in Forth Smith, Arkansas while delivering newspapers
Stevens called 911 begging for help when she was unable to get out of her car
Donna Reneau, who had resigned and was working her final shift as a Fort Smith Police Department dispatcher, was the person to answer Stevens' call at 4.38am
The audio of the 911 call was released on Thursday as the dispatcher and police department face criticism over the handling of Stevens' terrified pleas for help
At one point during the 22 minute call, Reneau could be heard telling the distraught woman to 'shut up' and lecturing her about the dangers of floods
Police said they will be investigating its policies into responses and their dispatch center in the wake of Stevens' death

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Reneau, who had been a dispatcher for five years with the department, could be heard telling Stevens to stop and calm down.

'You're not going to die. I don't know why you're freaking out. I know the water level is high... but you freaking out is doing nothing but losing your oxygen so calm down,' Reneau said in the audio.

Stevens could be heard repeatedly apologizing to the dispatcher, saying she didn't even see the water before she drove into it and that she had never done anything like this before.

'This will teach you next time not to drive in the water... I don't know how you didn't see it, you had to go right over it. The water just didn't appear,' Reneau said.

'You're not the only one who has been stuck in the water. So calm down.'

As Stevens became more frantic, she repeatedly asked how much longer it would take for first responders to get to her because no one was helping her.

'Am I not on the phone with you trying to get you some help?' Reneau responded.

At one point, Stevens even apologized for 'being rude' to the dispatcher due to her constant pleas for help.

When Stevens said she need to vomit, Reneau hit back saying: 'Well you're in water, you can throw up it's not going to matter.'

Stevens eventually asked the dispatcher to pray with her while she waited for first responders to arrive and Reneau replied: 'You go ahead and start the prayer.'

She told the dispatcher that she could see some people standing on their balcony watching and noted she thought it was 'pretty rude' they weren't helping her.

Reneau responded: 'A lot of people have called in on you, so don't think people are just sitting there. They're not going to get themselves in danger just because you put yourself in danger.'

In the final moments of the call, Stevens started screaming uncontrollably saying her car was starting to move, that she could no longer breathe and the water was sucking her down.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7411513/Horrifying-911-audio-dispatcher-lecturing-woman-drowns.html


Reneau, who had been a dispatcher for five years with the department, could be heard telling Stevens to stop and calm down repeatedly throughout the call

[hlthe2b]

1. The cruelty is just everywhere it seems...

RIP Ms. Stevens. May there be a kinder realm for you--maybe full of loving animals and sans humans.

[SWBTATTReg]

2. Perhaps her family (Stevens) can sue this dispatcher for delaying her possible rescue? NT

[appleannie1]

3. I was a dispatcher for over 15 years before there was 911.

She never should have been one. She sure did not know the right questions to ask in order to help the first responders. I did it at a time when technology did not give locations and I had to get hysterical people to tell me exactly where they were and give directions. Dispatched for 4 rural police departments, 2 fire departments and a rescue squad. I was on duty the night in the 80's when all the tornadoes hit Western Pennsylvania. How she handled that call was disgusting and negligent.

[lpbk2713]

4. Superior attitude.

She acted as though she would never find herself in a situation where she would need help desperately.

[JDC]

5. WTF? This is horrendous.

[Dave Starsky]

6. Life in Trump America now.

Being the biggest asshole you can possibly be is now looked at as a virtue.

[Grammy23]

7. This was just heartbreaking to read, knowing the outcome.

Contrast this with what a school teacher told me about answering emergency calls when Hurricane Ivan was making landfall on Pensacola in 2004. Policy regarding when emergency crews go out to rescue people is when the winds get above a certain level, they are not allowed to go out until the conditions improve. This woman (who volunteered for the emergency responders) had calls all night long from people in trouble, many in danger of drowning. Some were standing on their kitchen countertops as the water continued to rise. Some used broom handles to break through the ceiling to try to get in an attic to retreat from the water. It was hell on earth. One woman called repeatedly for help (every ten minutes) but the dispatcher could only tell her that help would come when the winds died down. She told me it was the toughest thing she had ever had to do. It broke her heart.

Some people should not be in emergency work. Yes, you need to be calm and collected, but cruel should never, ever be part of the job description. I grieve for the final moments of the woman’s life who had to hear the cruel lecture as the last words she heard.

[Karadeniz]

8. There MUST have been complaints earlier...one just doesn't up and become heartless.

[John Fante]

9. Supposedly she's devoutly religious.

I smell a MAGAt.

[smirkymonkey]

11. I said that in an earlier post.

I wanted to bet how much that this woman considered herself a devout "Christian" and it looks like I was right. Why are so many "Christians" so cruel and hateful? Shouldn't it be the opposite? Actually it was something I observed as a child, which started me on the path to agnosticism/atheism. I never understood it.

[Leith]

10. Something that might help if you are in that situation

Headrests are often removable and the metal rods that hold them in the back of the seat have sharp ends. They can be used to break windows.

Drowning in my car is not one of the ways I want to die.