A 911 operator told a teenage girl phoning for help to “stop whining” just after her father was struck by a car while trying to change a flat tire on the side of a highway, reported NBC.
Rick Warrick, 38, was on the way to Dave & Busters with his fiancée and two teenage children for a family outing when they got a flat tire. He pulled over onto the shoulder of Baltimore Parkway to change the tire of their 2007 Hyundai Sonata.
His 28-year-old fiancée Julia Pearce got out of the vehicle as well to help with the task.
While tightening the last lug on the spare, Warrick and his fiancée were struck down by a car. The vehicle did not stop.
Warrick’s daughter, seated in the back of the car, immediately phoned for help. NBC News4 obtained the audio from the 911 call.
“Can ya’ll hurry up!” the teen asked.
“Ma’am, stop yelling. I need a location,” the operator said. She then told him where they were situated and that her father and his fiancée were hit by a fast-moving vehicle.
“Yes, they both…”
“OK, let’s stop whining. It’s hard to understand you… Two people were struck, correct?” the operator said.
The teen pleaded, “They just laying here. They are just laying here. Nothing.”
“Is there someone else there I can talk to?” the operator asked. “Because it’s so hard…”
The young girl then explained that the only other conscious person around is her little brother:
“It’s only my little brother and I’m talking better than him right now.”
Captain Russ Davies of the Anne Arundel County Fire Department reportedly admitted that the 911 operator could’ve handled that situation differently.
“I think to some degree there could be a better choice of words,” Capt. Davies said.
"However, what he was attempting to do was to get her attention, to start ascertaining information from her. It was pretty clear at that point they didn't know where they were."
Pearce suffered serious injuries from the tragic accident: two broken legs, a broken pelvis, and a fractured skull. Warrick died at the scene.
The driver responsible has not yet come forward or been identified.
Anyone with information is asked to call 202-610-8737.
Watch the full NBC News4 report below.