A young child in Connecticut sent a handwritten apology to the New Haven Police Department after accidentally calling 911 while playing with a phone.
The girl, Lilly, said she made the call on Dec. 21, according to a letter later shared online in a Facebook post by the New Haven Police Department.
In the note, written in magenta marker on white paper, Lilly offered a simple message: “Sorry for calling 9-1-1.”
“I [thought] it was a play phone,” she added, promising, “I won’t do it again.”
In the department’s social media post, shared on Thursday, Jan. 6, police replied directly to Lilly.
“Lilly, we got your letter,” the message read. “It’s ok. Things happen …”
In the comments, many Facebook users responded warmly, sharing their own childhood stories of accidentally calling 911.
“I called 911 when I was like 4 cause our fan wouldn’t turn on and my parents were asleep and I was hot so I called and turns out it wasn’t plugged in,” one person wrote.
Another added, “Omg I used to do this when I was little. My dad would work late and I’d call 911 when I didn’t know where he was.”
Others praised Lilly for understanding the seriousness of calling emergency services.
“At least she knows what 911 is and now knows it’s not a play thing. Beautiful letter Lilly!” one commenter wrote.
Another said, “Kudos Lilly for knowing how to reach heroes, and kudos to the parents for teaching her to follow up on an innocent mistake.”
