FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. -- A 911 operator answered an emergency herself after an elderly man called for someone to bring him food after he returned from the hospital and found his refrigerator empty.

WTVD-TV in Durham reports that 81-year-old Clarence Blackmon returned home Tuesday after spending months in the hospital for cancer treatment and rehabilitation. When he got to his home in Fayetteville, he found his refrigerator empty.

Blackmon called 911. Operator Marilyn Hinson took the call and said someone would bring him some food.

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"He was hungry," Hinson told WTVD. "I've been hungry. A lot of people can't say that, but I can, and I can't stand for anyone to be hungry."

With her supervisor's permission, Hinson went to the grocery store and delivered the groceries in person with the help of Fayetteville police officers. She even made Blackmon a ham sandwich.

Blackmon said he will soon have a home health nurse who will check on him twice a week.