The Berrien County Sheriff’s Department is asking that 911 not be used to report violations of the governor’s stay at home order. Berrien County Undersheriff Chuck Heit tells WSJM News they have been getting plenty of calls about people violating the order. Unfortunately, the calls are going to the 911 dispatch center. That’s not the number you’re supposed to call.
“We are urging residents to contact the Berrien County COVID-19 hotline, which is 800-815-5485,” Heit said. “You can find that on several of the county websites as well. We have developed a tipline that we can then forward the information to local agencies.”
Heit says the sheriff’s department doesn’t want 911 overrun with calls that are not for urgent needs. As far as enforcing the order, he says the sheriff’s department has issued one citation and several warnings. An example of someone who would get a warning would be a residential contractor not following guidelines. Heit says they’ve run into some of those. Again, the Berrien County COVID-19 hotline is 1-800-815-5485. You can see the Berrien County Health Department’s COVID-19 page right here.
