HURLBURT FIELD, Fla. -- You might have seen it on Grey's Anatomy episodes: an emergency occurs that requires a prompt response. Someone calls 911 and the paramedics are on the scene in a matter of seconds.

It seems like an easy thing, but for a 911 call to be successful you should provide the right information to make sure the right help will be on the way at the right time and the right place.

People experiencing an emergency should let the response teams determine what an emergency is, said Staff Sgt. Jeremy Noah, a firefighter in the 1st Special Operations Civil Engineer Squadron Fire Department.

"Sometimes people feel the need to look for the facility manager, or they will look for the dorm manager before they contact 911," Sergeant Noah said. "When they have an emergency they need to initiate a 911 emergency action immediately."

But telling the 911 operator about the emergency is not enough. Sergeant Noah said people need to be as specific as they can about their whereabouts and contact information.

He said calls from cellular phones while on Hurlburt property will be routed immediately off base, whereas calls from base land lines will go straight to the Hurlburt Field dispatch center.

"If you are [using a cell phone] on Hurlburt Field property, main base, the Sound Side or Commando Village, your 911 call from your cell phone will go to Okaloosa county dispatch," he said. "Just let the operators know you are on Hurlburt Field property; they will relay it back to our dispatch center in just one to three seconds."

Sergeant Noah said callers need to give a street address or, better yet, a building number.

"Callers have to make sure they give us a callback number, a name and an actual physical location," he said. "Sometimes they will say they are with a certain unit but that doesn't help with our response."

He also advised Airmen to make sure they dial 911 first when they confront an emergency situation.

"Even if you are Self-Aid Buddy Care trained by all means initiate response, but make sure you use the 911 system first, so you can get that high level of medical care on the way," Sergeant Noah said. "The earlier we intervene, the better response we can give and the quicker we can react."