
Rescue 911 is an informational reality-based television series that premiered on April 18, 1989 and ended on August 27, 1996. The series was hosted by William Shatner and featured reenactments of emergency situations that often involved calls to 911. Though never intended as a teaching tool, various viewers used the knowledge they obtained watching the show. Two specials, titled "100 Lives Saved" and "200 Lives Saved," were dedicated to viewers who had written to CBS with their stories on how the knowledge they obtained watching the show allowed them to save the life of someone else. At least 350 lives have been saved as a result of what viewers learned from watching it. The show's popularity coincided with the widespread adoption of the 911 emergency system, replacing standalone police and fire numbers that would vary from municipality to municipality. The number is now universally understood in the United States and Canada to be the number dialed for emergency assistance nationwide.
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Air Date: 1989-09-05
Boy swept away in flooded arroyo (June 10, 1988. Albuquerque, New Mexico); Skydiver is knocked unconscious (April 18,...
Air Date: 1989-09-12
Construction workers trapped upside-down in collapsed cherry picker; Mother must perform CPR on her baby (May 16, 198...
Air Date: 1989-09-19
High school football player goes into cardiac arrest (November 7, 1986. Springdale, Arkansas); Helicopter rescue of a...
Air Date: 1989-09-26
Bystander attempts to rescue two women trapped in a submerged car (Elkhart, Indiana); Woman stabbed by intruder (Octo...
Air Date: 1989-10-03
Toddler falls into narrow hole (April 24, 1986. Colts Neck, New Jersey); Helicopter pilot attempts to locate a kidney...
Air Date: 1989-10-10
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Air Date: 1989-10-17
Spelunker trapped in flooded cave (July 1, 1985. Spring Mill State Park, Indiana); San Francisco neonatal hospital do...
Air Date: 1989-10-20
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Air Date: 1989-10-27
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Air Date: 1989-11-07
Funny car explodes (July 22, 1989. Denver, Colorado); Helicopter pilots use infrered device to track burglary suspect...
Air Date: 1989-11-14
Woman hides from intruders (September. Los Angeles, California); Aerovac documentary-Helicopter picks up victims of a...
Air Date: 1989-11-28
Woman outsmarts her assailant (May 5, 1989. Tucson, Arizona); Dispatcher's husband has heart attack (July 1, 1989. Ki...
Air Date: 1989-12-12
Woman shot by mentally ill brother (July 20, 1989. Dallas, Texas); New Years Eve fire at a Puerto Rico hotel (Decembe...
Air Date: 1989-12-19
Seattle Cop Shooting: Police officer is shot, good samaritans aid in the chase (May 15, 1989. Seattle, Washington); C...
Air Date: 1990-01-02
Dynamite explodes in construction worker's hand (August 17, 1989. Western Washington); Ex-convicts rob a winery (Sept...
Air Date: 1990-01-09
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Air Date: 1990-01-19
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Air Date: 1990-01-26
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Air Date: 1990-02-08
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Air Date: 1990-02-27
Fighter pilot crashes into runway at air show (April 24, 1988. El Toro, California); Documentary of the Charles Stuar...
Air Date: 1990-02-28
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Air Date: 1990-03-10
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Air Date: 1990-03-17
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Air Date: 1990-03-27
Intruder in a deaf mother's house (October 25, 1989. Chattanooga,Tennessee); Lumberjack pinned between logs (August 1...
Air Date: 1990-04-03
Elderly man shot outside his home (October 24, 1989. Taft, Florida); Toddler drowns in pool (September 24, 1989. Clar...
Air Date: 1990-04-10
Parrot alerts sleeping family of gas leak (September 23, 1983. East Boston, Massachusetts); Boy's clothes catch fire...
Air Date: 1990-04-23
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Air Date: 1990-04-28
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Air Date: 1990-05-08
This special episode re-aired some the first season's best stories: Police officer stops runaway boxcars pushing au...
Air Date: 1990-05-15
Girl accidentally stabs brother (December 1989. Atlanta, Georgia); Prisoners escape by taking four paramedics and pri...