Abandoned 911 Calls Source Of Problem In Big ‘D’

DALLAS (AP) — The city of Dallas has backed away from its claim that a T-Mobile "ghost calling" glitch flooded the city's 911 call center and resulted in hundreds of calls being placed on hold.

Authorities initially believed that T-Mobile phones were somehow inundating 911 with ghost calls, which are automatically generated by a phone, unbeknownst to its owner.

But officials said Thursday that it was actually abandoned 911 calls that were a source of the problem.

Callers would hang up after dialing 911 and dispatchers were then obligated to return the call to determine if there was an emergency. But that created a long backlog of calls.

Additional dispatchers will be added until changes can be implemented, including technological upgrades.

Officials have been criticized for delayed emergency responses that may have contributed to the deaths of two people.