Press Release posted 2/10/13 – The City of Sierra Madre and neighboring communities are experiencing an increase in burgleries and other property crimes which is likely attributed to the California’s corrections realignment plan, one of the most significant changes to California’s criminal justice system in decades. City Officials and the Police Department want to remind residents to remain vigilant and to immediately call 9-1-1 to report any crimes in progress.
Residents should call 9-1-1 to report any police, fire, or medical emergency, including:
• Crimes in progress or crimes that have just occurred
• Suspicious activity or behavior
• Fights or domestic violence
• Suicide attempts
• Building fires, brush fires, trash fires, or any other fires
• Traffic accidents
• Any medical emergency for which immediate care is needed
• Vicious animals – but not a bear walking through the neighborhood or yard
Please do not call 9-1-1 to report any non-emergency problems or to ask questions; instead, please call the Police Department’s non-emergency line at 626.355.1414.
When you call 9-1-1 from a Sierra Madre landline, and in many cases from a cell phone (some cell calls may be answered by Pasadena or Arcadia dispatchers), a Sierra Madre Dispatcher will answer your call and request information about your emergency, including:
• Your exact location, or as much information about your location as possible
• The nature of the emergency (someone has a gun, the house is on fire, a neighbor collapsed, etc.)
• How many people are injured, if any?
• Names and descriptions of the people involved in the emergency or situation
• Any conditions which could make the situation unsafe for responding personnel or bystanders (weapons, gas leaks, disabled vehicles, animals, etc.)
Stay on the line until the dispatcher hangs up. You may be able to provide the dispatcher with additional information as emergency personnel respond, or the dispatcher may be able to provide you with emergency instructions.