this post was submitted on 28 Aug 2026
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Technology

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Colorado: to test the 911 service, you must first place a normal call to the 911 center. WTF, they don’t think you might be unable to make normal calls (the very reason you need to test 911)? (puc.colorado.gov)
submitted 5 hours ago* (last edited 5 hours ago) by debanqued@beehaw.org to c/technology@beehaw.org
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From the linked FAQ:

How can I make a test 9-1-1 call? To make a test 9-1-1 call, you need to first contact the 9-1-1 center that serves your area. The non-emergency numbers for Colorado's 9-1-1 centers are available here(opens in new window). If you're unsure which 9-1-1 center serves your area, call the 911 Program at 303-894-2871, and we'll help you identify the 9-1-1 center for the location you want to test from.

When you call the 9-1-1 center, ask them if it would be okay to make a test 9-1-1 call. If they are particularly busy or are handling a major incident, they may ask you to call back at a later time.

When your phone cannot make normal calls for whatever reason¹, you obviously want to know if 911 calls will at least work. And the idiots design a test procedure that requires normal phone calls to work.

① Typical reasons why you may be unable to make normal calls:

  • You have a GSM phone with no GSM chip, or unsubscribed chip.
  • You are on a prepaid plan and have no credit.

So indeed the telecom industry has a glaring competency problem.

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[–] Quexotic@beehaw.org 4 points 4 hours ago (1 children)

I sympathize somewhat, but there many documented ways to test the functionality of a phone and its ability to make calls that would validate its ability to call 911 without actually calling it.

[–] debanqued@beehaw.org 1 points 4 hours ago* (last edited 3 hours ago)

Gotta reference? Or can you elaborate? At the moment, I have a VOIP phone I need to test (as normal calls are blocked).

To be clear, it’s more about testing the phone network and services, not the hardware or software you use to dial numbers. I know my device on my side of the transaction functions fine.