Washington State E911 officials are warning the public that letting children use old, unused cell phones can lead to unintentional calls to 911 that slow down the system.

According to E911, one in three calls to 911 is accidental.

When children are given old cell phones, it is easy for them to accidentally call 911. Most people do not know that a cell phone call still call 911 – even if the phone has no service. All it needs is a charged battery and a cell signal.

When a call to 911 is made accidentally by a child, call receivers at 911 centers must take the time to interview the child or call the number back during a hang-up to ensure that the call is not, in fact, intentional.

These false calls can disrupt the 911 system and delay other calls to 911 that are real emergencies.

What can you do to reduce false calls?

• Keep cell phones “locked”

• Remove the phone’s battery when storing it

• Do not allow children to play with cell phones

Last year there were more than 6 million calls to 911 in Washington state.

An additional 2 million calls were made to state non-emergency reporting numbers.

The Kent Fire Department Regional Fire Authority and other state agencies are working to reduce the number of accidental 911 calls, keeping phone lines open for true emergencies.

For more on E911, go to http://mil.wa.gov/e911.