A quiet 999 call was quickly identified as something more serious thanks to a call handler in Kent Police’s Force Control Room (FCR).
During the early hours of Thursday 2 September 2021, Megan Turtle was on duty when she received a call from someone who had dialled 999 but would not speak.
She conducted a number of checks and established that the caller was in distress.
Calls linked
Using data available she was able to link the call to a previous one, identifying a possible suicide risk and began talking to the man who started to answer her questions. From this Megan began to build a rapport with him and she was able to obtain his exact location.
The man had climbed onto the wrong side of a bridge and Megan continued to talk to him, remaining calm and professional at all times. A patrol was sent and was able to pull the man to safety.
Chief Inspector Jennifer Bassan said: ‘Megan showed great initiative on the call, she used the police systems to establish a link to a previous incident which highlighted the risk and need for immediate action.
‘Her efforts in this instance led to a positive outcome.’
Megan, who will be leaving Kent Police this month to begin university said: ‘This incident highlights the sort of situations that we deal with every day in the control room.
‘The best part of this job is the chance to help people at a time when they really need it. We are privileged to get the opportunity to make a difference to people’s lives in our everyday work.
‘There is a lot of support for traumatic incidents and mental health within Kent Police for both staff and the people we are trying to help. This allows us to process our emotions and continue to assist the public when they need us.’
To find out more about working in the Kent Police control room click here.