County 911 offers alternate way to report emergencies

Lake County Dispatch services are offering an alternative way for callers to report emergencies besides calling 911.

Short message service (SMS) text messages can now be sent to the county’s emergency dispatch for emergencies, Lake County OFfice of Emergency Management Director Steve Stanley stated in a press release.

The new feature is available to AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon Wireless cell phone users.

There is a 160-character limit, as with other text messages, and users must have an active data plan for the service to work.

Everyone is urged to call 911 first, and utilize the texting feature if a phonecall is not a viable option.

Text-to-911 is not a replacement to voice calling in an emergency situation, Stanley noted in the press release, but instead an inhancement to reach 911 in unique situations, including:

- The caller is hearing/voice impaired

- A medical emergency leaving the caller unable to talk

- When talking loud will put the caller in danger, such as a domestic violence situation

- An active shooter

- When reception is poor and a voice call can not be made, but an SMS can be completed

Texting for an emergent situation is not guaranteed to be answered immediately.

The text must be sent and received by the 911 dispatch center, then a dispatcher must read the text and then reply.

Stanley says that providing as much detail to the text is important, such as exact location and nature of the emergency.

He also advises against using slang, emoticons and abbreviations.

Photos, videos and other attachments cannot be appended to text messages sent to county dispatch.

Texts sent in an area where service is not available will “bounce back,” and the user will receive a message explaing that Text-to-911 is not available in the area.