How do you get help in an emergency?
Getting help is already helping. Discover why an accurate location and listening matter during an emergency call.
The short answer
Do not put yourself in danger. Get an adult and call 112 for emergency help in Germany when needed. Say where you are and what happened. Listen and answer the emergency operator's questions.
Puschel and Flauschi examine a disconnected training phone on a table in a learning room. Invented conversation practice; nobody injured, no real emergency call or treatment. AI-created illustration, not a photograph of nature.
What the diagram shows
The diagram simplifies the process. First compare its shapes and arrows. You can read its labels in larger text below.
Read the picture labels
These are the words and sentences from the diagram above. The full explanation follows below.
- In a real emergency: 112 in Germany and the EU
- Use paper for practice — never dial a real number!
- Caller
- Give the location clearly
- Report observations
- Answer questions
- Dispatch centre
- Listens and asks questions
- Arranges suitable help
- May give instructions
- Arrows show two-way conversation, not a rescue route.
- After giving the location, stay on the phone and keep listening.
- Protect your own safety and get help immediately.
- Say what you know — do not invent unknown information.
- Not complete first-aid instructions or a substitute for training.
- Before travelling outside the EU, check local emergency options with adults.
An imagined Wusel scene
Puschel and Flauschi investigate
In an explicitly pretend exercise, Puschel first gives only his name. Flauschi plays the operator and asks where he is. They add the exact practice location to their card. They rehearse without making a real emergency call and leave time to listen.
Look closely
In an invented learning room, Puschel and Flauschi sit before a clearly pretend, disconnected training phone. Nobody is injured. The scene illustrates conversation practice, not actual treatment.
An example to help you understand
Draw a phone on paper. An adult plays a dispatcher and you play an invented caller at an invented place. For example: “At the entrance of our imagined Wuselpark, beside the blue gate, somebody needs urgent help.” The adult asks about the location and observed events. Answer and wait for the next question. Do not dial a real number, stage an accident or practise medical techniques on each other. This role-play explains the conversation; it is not complete training.
Try explaining it
What helps after calling the emergency number?
Choose a), b) or c), then explain your choice.
- a)Give location and events, listen and answer questions.
- b)Hang up after giving the location without waiting for questions.
- c)Describe only the event; the operator does not need to know the location.
Show the explanation
Correct: a): Give location and events, listen and answer questions.
Do not put yourself in danger. Get an adult and call 112 for emergency help in Germany when needed. Say where you are and what happened. Listen and answer the emergency operator's questions.
Explore in more detail
Here you will find longer explanations and further details. You can explore them together.
1. Helping starts with your own safety
Self-protection means helpers do not put themselves in danger. A child need not attempt a dangerous rescue. Calling loudly for adults and help from a safe position matters. A child can also make an emergency call when urgent help is needed; a perfect sentence is not required. Helping depends on the situation and one’s abilities, not on proving courage.
2. 112 connects you to emergency help
112 is the common free emergency number in every EU country. In Germany it reaches fire and ambulance services. Adults check local emergency arrangements before other travel destinations. A call is a conversation with trained staff at a dispatch centre: the place that handles emergency calls and arranges suitable help. Real emergency calls are for real emergencies, never for testing.
3. Give the location and answer questions
Describe the emergency location as accurately as possible: for example town, street, building number or a known meeting point. Then stay on the phone and answer further questions. Report what you actually observe; do not invent unknown information. The dispatcher asks about events, people involved and their condition. An organised conversation helps arrange appropriate help. You need not recite a memorised list.
4. Listen and keep helping appropriately
Listen for questions and instructions rather than simply hanging up. If safe, stay with the affected person, speak reassuringly and support adult helpers. Practical techniques are taught and practised in an age-appropriate course. This page gives no resuscitation, bandaging or medication instructions. That does not mean doing nothing in an emergency: calling for help and following dispatcher instructions are important contributions.
An optional question for further exploration
You can use the longer explanation above. This is extra, not needed for the first quiz.
An extra question
Should you hang up immediately after giving the location?
Discover the answer
No. Stay on the phone, answer questions and follow dispatcher instructions. The location helps responders find the place; other answers help arrange suitable assistance. Never make a real emergency call for practice.
Pictures and sources for adults
Sources for further reading
Facts checked against the specialist sources below on 12 October 2026. The Wusel scene is fictional; comparisons and simplified models are explicitly explained. Sources are in English.