El Pasoans raise concerns over 911 response times

EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) -- For decades, Americans have been taught to call 911 in an emergency. Now, some El Paso residents say when they needed help, the system failed them.

One woman said her emergency call was placed on hold. Another man said he waited hours for police who never arrived at the scene of a crash.

“If we waited any longer, he wouldn't have been alive. He would have died,” said El Pasoan Eliza Martinez, recalling a recent emergency involving a family member. Martinez said doctors later told her her son's lung was filled with blood clots.

“It infuriated me,” she said. “I'm concerned had it been someone in the middle of a heart attack, they would have died by the time somebody picked up the call.”

While Martinez says her concern is with being placed on hold, another El Paso resident says his problem was the delay in response.

ABC-7 has reached out to multiple agencies to get answers. Tune in to ABC-7 Tuesday at 10 to see "Help on Hold."