ULSAN — A caller said only "I'm struggling" before hanging up. Treating the dropped call as an emergency, fire authorities traced it and rescued a teenager.
Ulsan Fire Headquarters said on the 2nd that its 119 emergency command center and field crews worked together to safely rescue a teenager in crisis, acting on a report received at about 10:55 p.m. on the 1st.
The caller had dialed 119, said "I'm struggling," and ended the call. A dispatcher immediately tried to call back, but the caller hung up again without giving a specific location or details, and could not be reached afterward.
Given the urgency, the 119 command center switched to emergency response mode. Dispatchers simultaneously attempted callbacks, ran a cell-tower location search, checked past reports and dispatch records, identified the caller's guardian and requested police assistance. A rescue team and an ambulance crew from the local station were also sent to the scene.
With no address confirmed, the dispatchers analyzed report and dispatch records to obtain a guardian's contact number. They then reached the guardian and gathered information including the caller's recent movements. The information collected was relayed to field crews in real time.
The caller was not found in the initial search, but additional information from the command center narrowed the search area. Working from the shared account of the teenager's movements, field crews conducted an intensive search, located the caller in a critical condition and secured the teenager. The ambulance crew checked the teenager's condition before handing the caller over to the guardian and police.
Ulsan Fire Headquarters said it will strengthen data analysis and field coordination for reports that are unclear in content or difficult to locate.
"Even a few words can be a signal of an emergency," Ulsan Fire Headquarters Chief Kim Yong-su said. "Through the coordination system between the command center and field crews, we will do our utmost to ensure citizens' safety."
