DENVER — On Capitol Hill, as folks were leaving Pride Fest, a man heading south on Grant Street at 12th Avenue, says he looked up from texting and floored his car to avoid a car heading east on 12th. When he gunned his engine he swerved and slammed into several parked cars.

Martha Perez says the accident was bad enough, but not being able to get through to 911 was even worse.

“I began dialing when I came outside about 10:15 pm, but the system never connected with a 911 operator, only a recorded message in languages from Asia,” said Martha Perez. “I was so mad, because it wasn’t just me, all the people on the street and from our building were also trying to get through but no one could.”

Denver 911 officials first said calls never go to a recording, but later admitted sometimes that in fact, it does happen. They did indicate when call volume is high, sometimes there is a roll over to a recording.

The city is looking into what happened Sunday night, but because an investigation has begun, they are limited as to what information about the incident they can release.