HOLLAND (WHTC-AM/FM) — After a digital upgrade, Allegan County’s central dispatchers now can use Smart911 — a free service allowing individuals and families to sign up online and provide key information to 9-1-1 call takers during an emergency.
“Smart911saves critical time in an emergency and has proven to save lives nationwide,” said Greg Janik, Saugatuck Township Fire Chief. “The additional information provided in a Smart911 Safety Profile enables us to know exactly where we are going and who we are looking for in a house fire or at the scene of a vehicle accident, those details can help us respond faster and more efficiently.”
Smart911 allows individuals to create a Safety Profile for their household at www.smart911.com or on the Smart911 App that includes any information they want 9-1-1 and response teams to have in the event of an emergency. When a citizen makes an emergency call, their Safety Profile is automatically displayed to the 9-1-1 call taker, allowing them to send the right response teams to the right location with the right information.
The Smart911 app provides greater access to the lifesaving benefits of Smart911 and targeted location-based alerts to all individuals. The Smart911 App is available on the Apple Store or Google Play.
“Individuals that create a Safety Profile will be better prepared in all towns and counties across the country that support Smart911,” said Jeremy Ludwig, Director of Allegan County Central Dispatch, “The Safety Profile travels with you and the additional information provided allows us to send the right response teams faster.”
With Smart911, individuals can link both homes and work addresses to mobile phones, which can be passed on to responders in the field for more a detailed, rapid response. Additional information including pets in the home, vehicle details in the event of an accident, and even emergency contacts can all be included in a Safety Profile. All information is optional, and the citizen has the ability to choose what details they would like to include.
“The benefits of this information on a 9-1-1 call from a cell phone are immeasurable”, said Sheriff Frank Baker, “Mobile phones do not provide an address to the 9-1-1 call taker. Often during emergency situations the caller is unable to provide the needed information to the call taker to dispatch emergency assistance and the Safety Profile could speak for them when they might be unable.”
Smart911 is currently available in 40 states and more than 1,500 municipalities across the country, and has been credited with positively impacting emergency outcomes including a missing child in which the girl’s photo and physical description were immediately available to 9-1-1 and responders, as well as a heart attack victim where an address and medical notes allowed responders to be dispatched to his location quickly.
Jeremy Ludwig, Allegan County’s Central Dispatch director, said in an email to media that people can create a safety profile with Smart911, which means emergency responders would have vital details available, should a crisis occur.
