Help is a Text Away
PICTURED ABOVE:
Jessamine County E-911 Training Officer Megan Buchanan said texting affords several benefits, especially if a person needing help is in a bad situation. Texting 911 can also be used for those in the deaf or hard-of-hearing population. (Photo by Jim Robertson)
It’s a simple concept. In the event of an emergency, people can call 911. However, what happens if the crisis does not afford the person the luxury of speaking?
A program sweeping the country is now allowing citizens to text 911 and a smattering of 911 centers across the state now can receive that form of communication.
Jessamine County E-911 is among those agencies offering the service. E-911 Director Chris Bowman said his agency began looking into the program in fall 2018.
“We already knew about it when we started looking at it,” Bowman said. “The technology is out there, and it’s not that expensive, and it gives us as dispatchers another tool to help someone.”
When a person texts 911, the message pops up on a dispatcher’s computer screen in a bubble format, similar to a text one would receive on a cell phone. From there, a dispatcher and citizen can communicate back and forth.
Bowman said when the 911 center receives a text, the location of the person is within a few hundred feet.
Many Benefits
In today’s world, 911 centers must be up-to-date on the latest communication technology. Jessamine County E-911 Training Officer Megan Buchanan said texting affords so many benefits, especially if a person needing help is in a bad situation.
“It’s good for home invasions or situations where you don’t want a person to hear you,” she said. “We have received domestic calls. It has proven to be a valuable tool to have in domestic situations. The old way was for someone to call 911 and put the phone down with the line open and talk to give the telecommunicator clues to the person’s location. For example, if they’re in a moving vehicle, they can say, drop me off at McDonald’s, or leave me here at Wendy’s. However, being able to text is so much easier because the abuser is not able to hear the caller give a location.”
In addition to those in precarious circumstances, it also provides an additional avenue for the deaf and hard of hearing population.
Also, it is an excellent service if the person needing help cannot speak because of a medical condition, such as asthma.
Cost of Service
In Jessamine County’s case, they partnered with neighboring counties to provide the service, Bowman said.
“An opportunity came up when Lexington and Garrard/Lincoln County combined 911 centers were interested in doing it, so we all went in together to share the cost,” Bowman said.
Those along the U.S. 27 corridor found out they could save money by doing some cost-sharing.
Jessamine County E-911 Director Chris Bowman said his agency partnered with Lexington and Garrard/Lincoln County combined 911 centers to offer the service to citizens. Additionally, Bowman said the startup cost of the program isn’t that great, and most counties should be able to afford it. (Photo by Jim Robertson)
Once Jessamine County began researching the program, they discovered that even without a partnership with surrounding agencies, the county could afford it.
“We found that we could have done it on our own,” he said. “Many agencies think it’s very costly, but it’s not. The subscription is based on a county’s population. So for some of the smaller counties, it would be much less.”
Jessamine County uses is INdigital as its provider along with equipment used many other 911 agencies already have in place, Bowman said.
“The texts come into that, and our network counties have what is called a Solacom – that’s our phone system,” he continued. “So it’s integrated into infrastructure that is already in place. We didn’t have to buy additional equipment.”
Since the program was implemented in Jessamine County in July 2019, the 911 center has averaged about 10 texts per month, Bowman said.
“Many people think that they’re going to get bombarded with those texts,” he said. “It hasn’t been the case.”
Spreading the Word
“We posted videos on Facebook telling people to call (911) if you can, but text if you can’t. We also talk to people at various community events,” said Bowman noting Jessamine County has increased its public education messages.
According to the National Emergency Number Association (NENA), only top tier wireless providers (AT&T, Verizon, Sprint and T-Mobile) support the service.
