Portland 911 calls hit 25-year record during riots
EMS1.comOfficials said there were nearly 2,000 emergency calls, as well as more than 2,000 non-emergency calls, as civil unrest peaked on May 30by Maxine Bernstein - Jun 26, 2020The Oregonian, Portland, Ore.PORTLAND — On May 30, the city’s 911 system fielded a record number of emergency and non-emergency calls for a single day in at least 25 years.That was the morning Portland police declared a riot in downtown after some protesters set a fire inside the Justice Center and others broke into businesses, stole merchandise, tagged buildings with graffiti and set vehicles a blaze.
There were 1,930 emergency calls and 2,115 non-emergency calls that day, according to Lisa St. Helen, operations manager of the Bureau of Emergency Communications. “That’s a massive number,‘' said St. Helen, with nearly 25 years on the job. “It’s the highest I’ve ever seen.‘'While the city’s emergency...