I asked the Sheriff Department about Texting/SMS to 911...Where, I hunt, I unable make a cell phone call(Prairie Farm WI), but I can send text/SMS. In the event of an emergency is there an emergency number, I can text/SMS for help? I pasted their follow-up: Currently there is no way to send a text message to 911. It is hard for me to recommend options, but I personally, I would first try to call the 911 center as we could immediately see where you are by GPS coordinates. Even if the call is dropped, we would still be able to see where you are at. Secondly, I would text the emergency message to a friend and have them call the Barron County 911 center on your behalf. Have the caller give us your phone number and cell phone provider. With that information, the 911 center could then 'ping' your phone (locate you by GPS). Next-Generation 911 is still a few years away (around 2017)... when the system is available, users will be able to text, send video, and pictures to 911 centers. Thanks, Todd Volk Emergency Services Director Barron County
Does this work if your location services/GPS is off on your phone? I assume it shouldnt, but probably still does. I dont like the big brother thing... but this is good info to give my wife on solo hunting trips out of state.
OP is saying if you have enough signal to get a text message off but not complete a call. I have numerous spots around a couple of our properties where this is the case. Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk
Correct - I understand that. I guess what Im asking without hijacking(sorry), is if you do not have cell service, they can still locate you according to the OP via GPS. If your GPS is off, and you dont have service, dead phone, can they still locate you?
With your phone number and service provider they can triangulate your position via pinging your phone. If you don't have service, they should be able to see where your phone last pinged at. So if your phone died, etc. That should give them a starting point. Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk
Never really thought a out texting 911. My hunting location has the same issue. I am able to call if I am on top of a ridge, but I hunt right along some creek bottoms. So if I were to fall or get hurt some how, I don't think my odds of being on a ridge are in my favor. On the other hand, my wife just hit a deer with our car a couple months ago. The location she hit it in is a realm "dead" some for our cell phones. You are almost guaranteed to lose a call when driving through there. When she called 911 She said it when straight through, and was crystal clear. So I don't know if the phones or provider boost the signal when 911 is dialed or what. It was just her and our daughter, and only the deer was hurt. Oh yeah...it totalled our 2011 Equinox, and it wasn't worth trying to save the meat either.
September 2017, update: PS, just a PSA(nothing intended or implied about black helicopters or that paranoid stuff) From: Michael Judy <[email protected]> Sent: Saturday, September 16, 2017 9:05 AM Subject: Re: Barron County Sheriffs Department Contact: Follow up, to a 911 SMS/text question. The points that Todd listed would still be your best options so far. Text/SMS to 911 is available to 911 Centers, however there is a significant cost associated with implementing it. We're currently looking at upgrading our system to include this functionality, but we can't confirm anything quite yet. If you can follow-up with me next year, I hope to have a compatible system in place. Thanks for checking in, Mike Mike Judy Director of Emergency Services Barron County Sheriff's Department 2105 response: Currently there is no way to send a text message to 911. It is hard for me to recommend options, but I personally, I would first try to call the 911 center as we could immediately see where you are by GPS coordinates. Even if the call is dropped, we would still be able to see where you are at. Secondly, I would text the emergency message to a friend and have them call the Barron County 911 center on your behalf. Have the caller give us your phone number and cell phone provider. With that information, the 911 center could then 'ping' your phone (locate you by GPS). Next-Generation 911 is still a few years away (around 2017)... when the system is available, users will be able to text, send video, and pictures to 911 centers. Thanks, Todd Volk Emergency Services Director Barron County
During Hurricane Katrina, Cell service was mostly out on the Gulf Coast. We had several hundred evacuees come to our city... A lady and her son arrived in our town seeking help. Her husband was a Deputy in the Gulf area and couldn't leave. She gave me his cell number and No Phone Service... I tried him on text. Less than 5 minutes later he texted me back. Somehow the text didn't need the amount of bandwidth, or the power of a phone call. His text managed to hit a tower in the Houston, Tx. area. I drove the lady to a local cell provider and she bought a cell phone she could text with. Bingo... She had reliable texting, but still no phone service along the coast. I BECAME A BELIEVER IN TEXTING THAT DAY. My current hunting club has almost no phone coverage, but I can text my wife from almost anywhere on our property. And If I send a text that doesn't go thru... It will send whenever I'm in range of a tower.
