Contains spoilers for “Only Murders in the Building” Season 4, Episode 2 — “Gates of Heaven”

Season 4 of Hulu’s “Only Murders in the Building” has kicked off with a punchy new mystery, and it’s already affecting many of our favorite podcasting sleuths, with Charles-Haden Savage (Steve Martin) being left with quite the dilemma during “Gates of Heaven.” He’s not only coping with visions of his late stuntwoman, Sazz Pataki (Jane Lynch), he’s suddenly confronted by the very physical presence of Jan Bellows (Amy Ryan), his former girlfriend from Season 1. Since Jan has been incarcerated since she was arrested for trying to kill Charles, it’s not a happy reunion for the aging actor-turned-true murder podcaster.

When Jan appears in his closet, Charles immediately calls 911. Unfortunately for Charles, he finds out he’s one of many people in line for emergency services that day. It takes hours for a human voice to answer, and by then, Jan is gone. Luckily, he doesn’t need 911’s help at this point — Detective Donna Williams (Da’Vine Joy Randolph) arrives at his apartment with a SWAT team looking for Jan.

Can something like this happen in real life? While Charles’ experience is exaggerated for the sake of comedy, some 911 call centers have put Americans on hold before due to equipment, electrical, or operational failures. Generally, you may be asked to wait if your situation isn’t a time-sensitive emergency, or if the call is determined to be a non-emergency by the operator. If it is an emergency, your call will be answered in the order in which it was received. Recently, some cities have been coping with a staffing crisis, which has left budgets on a shoestring. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported in 2024 that half of the people who called 911 in DeKalb County were put on hold, and in Atlanta, 13% of callers were forced to wait 20 seconds or more before speaking with a human in 2023. And citizens are understandably upset.

Many people who call 911 and find themselves in a holding pattern are understandably dismayed. Luckily, in some cases, these incidents are leading to legislative breakthroughs.

In 2024, for instance, the Kansas City Missouri Board of Police Commissioners announced that they will be auditing their 911 system in compliance with Cathryn’s Code, named after Cathryn McClelland, who collapsed in her home. Her son Joel called 911 and was routed through two separate systems because of the way his family’s cell phone bounced off of their receiving tower. It took ten minutes to get an ambulance to the McClellands’ front door because the phone “told” the 911 operators that the house was in a different county than it actually was, despite Joel telling the operator very early in the call where his family lives. By the time help reached Cathryn McClelland, her heart had stopped. She suffered from brain damage and ultimately died at the hospital a few days later. 

KSHB reports that her widower, Frank, sued the county and received a $4 million settlement. More importantly, Cathryn’s Code was enacted, leading to regular auditing of the city’s 911 calls to ensure that people are getting the help they need in a timely fashion. It helps to make sure that the silly comedy of Charles’ fictional day-long wait for 911 to respond no longer happens in the real world, preventing more tragedies like Cathryn’s.