Beginning on September 16, the Concord Police Department’s emergency dispatchers will be able to receive text messages in situations where the caller is unable to speak aloud.
Callers from cellular phones who are unable to make a traditional voice call to 911 can now send emergency text messages to the department’s 24-hour Emergency Dispatch Center.
The new Text-to-911 service does not replace phone calls to 911.
The option is intended for callers who:
- Are hearing or voice impaired.
- Are incapable of talking due to a medical emergency.
- May face danger if those persons victimizing them hear their conversations with a 911 operator, such as during an abduction, a home invasion robbery, or a domestic violence situation
Tips for Text-to-911 in an emergency:
- Provide the exact location of the emergency and describe what type of help is needed.
- Keep text messages simple, brief, and concise.
- Do NOT send electronic media, such as Emoji’s, photos, or videos.
- Silence your phone if you do not want anyone else to hear the incoming reply messages from the 911 operator.
Traditional voice calls to 911 are still the fastest way to reach emergency help and should always be the first option.
Concord PD’s text-to-911 has been operational for a while as I used it on July 28, 2019 and was connected with Concord PD. I was in Walnut Creek at the time but apparently my cell phone was connected to a tower in Concord. I used the text thing as a local AT&T cell tower had failed and was garbling voice calls.
September 5, 2019 was Concord’s planned/announced date for being fully operational. Several other departments are also connected to the text-to-911 system. These include Antioch, Brentwood, Contra Costa County Sheriff, Martinez, Pleasant Hill, San Ramon, and Walnut Creek. If you are in the north part of the county you may reach the CHP’s text to 911 operator.
To use the system you text 911 and the system routes the message to the local department based on your location. Unlike voice calls, you can’t text the local dispatcher directly and instead need to text 911. It opens up a session window on a police dispatcher’s computer. Thus you will get some canned messages about text sessions being opened and closed.