Calling 911 Near Water: What to Say and How to Share Your Location

When you call 911 near water, say what is happening and where in your first sentence, for example: "A child is drowning at Willow Lake, at the beach by the north parking lot." Cell phones can't always give your exact location, so describe it with landmarks, signs and the entrance you used, then stay on the line and answer every question until the call taker tells you to hang up.

Knowing how to call for help is part of water safety. The American Red Cross lists knowing how to call for help (opens in a new tab) among its basic "water smarts".

What dispatchers need first

Delaware's state 911 office gives a simple order for how to use 911 (opens in a new tab):

1. Dial 9-1-1 from a safe place.
2. Wait for the call taker to answer.
3. State the emergency.
4. Confirm your name, address and phone number.
5. Stay calm, speak clearly and follow any instructions.
6. Stay on the line until the call taker says to hang up.

In a water emergency, the key words are what happened ("someone went under and hasn't come up"), how many people, whether they are breathing, and where you are. While help is on the way, follow the first steps in a drowning emergency and reach or throw, don't go. If you dial by mistake, Delaware asks you not to hang up, because a hung-up call still shows as an abandoned call and the 911 center will call you back to check.

Giving a location without an address

Delaware's 911 office says cell phones cannot give your exact location (opens in a new tab). It says location may reach the 911 center as coordinates, but that this varies by carrier and phone, so be ready to describe where you are with landmarks, mile markers or road signs.

Near water, useful details include:

• the name of the park, beach, lake, river or trail;
• the entrance, parking lot or boat launch you used;
• the nearest cross streets or road;
• anything nearby that responders can see: a lifeguard stand, pier, bridge, playground, marked trail sign or building;
• which side of the lake or river you are on, and roughly how far from the entrance.

Before you go, look up the address of the park entrance or parking lot and save it in your phone. Your phone's map app can also show your current position; read out the nearest street or the coordinates if the call taker asks.

Guide them in. If there are other adults, send one to the road, gate or parking lot to wave responders to the right spot.

Text to 911 and when to use it

In New York City, Text-to-911 (opens in a new tab) works in all five boroughs, in English and Spanish. The city's rule is simple: always call 911 if you can, and text only if you can't. Texting helps people who are Deaf, have hearing loss or a speech disability, or can't safely speak.

New York City's tips for texting 911:

• Enter 911 with no spaces or hyphens.
• Tell the operator if you are Deaf.
• Text the reason for your emergency.
• Text your full address, cross streets if available, and borough.
• Use complete words and sentences, not abbreviations.
• Don't text 911 in a group chat, and don't send photos, videos, GIFs or emojis.
• Answer all of the operator's questions. The operator will end the chat.

Text-to-911 is free in New York City but needs a text or data plan. Outside New York City, check your local 911 center's website to find out whether texting works where you live or travel.

If English isn't your first language

You can still get help. New York City's 911 system brings interpreters onto calls. The NYPD's Language Access Plan (opens in a new tab) reports that about 3.4% of the 911 calls it received in 2020 needed language services, and that its interpreter service handled calls in 99 languages that year. Stay on the line, and the call taker can connect an interpreter.

Families who are new to the U.S. can read more in our guide to water safety for families new to the United States.

Kids can call 911 too

Children are sometimes the first to see trouble. The City of Aurora's 911 center has clear 911 rules for kids (opens in a new tab). Teach your child:

• 911 is not a toy. It is for emergencies only.
• When to call, for example if someone is very sick and has a hard time breathing or turns blue, if someone collapses or can't be woken, if they are lost, or if they aren't sure whether it's an emergency and no adult is nearby to ask.
• The questions they'll hear: Where are you? What is the emergency? What is your phone number? What is your name?

Aurora also suggests posting emergency numbers by your phones, making sure children memorize their home address and phone number, and making sure they know the name and number of an adult to call. Show older children how to unlock a phone and reach the emergency call screen.

At beaches without lifeguards

The National Weather Service says that at a beach with no lifeguard, you should designate a water watcher who can call 9-1-1 (opens in a new tab). That person keeps a charged phone and watches the water, nothing else. If someone is caught in a rip current, see how to help without going in.

What you can do today

• Save the addresses of your local pool, beach and park entrances in your phone.
• Post your home address and cross streets by your pool gate or back door.
• Practice a pretend 911 call with your children, using a toy phone.
• If you're in NYC, practice how you'd text 911 (without sending it).
• Add "who calls 911" to your water emergency action plan.