Emergency workers respond to hundreds of calls during busy weekend in Nashville

Nikki McGee
·2 min read

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — With tens of thousands of people visiting downtown Nashville this weekend, first responders are working hard to keep up with an increased call volume and hard-to-reach emergencies.

Between the Nashville Predators’ final playoff game, Morgan Wallen‘s concerts, and other events, the Metro Nashville Department of Emergency Communications (DEC) estimated more than 100,000 people would be attending weekend festivities in the downtown area. On Friday alone, the DEC received more than 500 calls.

“When you have upwards of 100,000 people in an area, you’re going to see sometimes some challenges with that,” DEC Public Information Officer James Matthews said.

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This weekend’s influx was caused by several of the more than 700 special events the DEC prepares for each year. When it comes to getting through these massive crowds, emergency workers lean on downtown partnerships to help locate individuals quickly.

“The other pieces of the puzzle — Metro Nashville Police, [Nashville] Fire, and dispatch — that comes together when we need to find somebody downtown, and our technology, which is extremely beneficial and it keeps getting better and better,” Matthews explained.

According to Matthews, the DEC often gets calls from individuals who have gotten separated from their groups and are unsure of where they are. He encouraged anyone going downtown to be aware of your surroundings; stick with your group; and if you see something, say something.

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“If you are okay with not reporting something, and if something were to happen…you’ve got to make that judgment call, and we’re very lucky here in Nashville because our community and visitors, they know when something’s up and they will be the first to report it,” Matthews told News 2.

To help keep 911 lines open, Matthews urged individuals to call 311 in non-life-threatening situations, or report them to the HUB Nashville.

You can also report certain criminal activity to Metro Nashville Police Department’s citizen online reporting program.

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