Smart 911 In Hot Spring County
In an emergency, seconds count. Making sure 9-1-1 dispatchers and emergency responders have all the information they need frequently can mean the difference between life and death.
To assist in this critical task, Hot Spring County has launched Smart911, a supplemental data service that allows residents to create a personal safety profile in a secure database. That information can then be used to assist dispatchers and responders in the field.
Smart911 is free to every resident of Hot Spring County, and registration is voluntary. To create a safety profile, residents can use the registration link at www.hotspringdem.orgor go directly to www.smart911.com. Then, they enter their phone numbers, as well as address, medical, disability, or other information for all family members that could be useful to emergency personnel. When a call comes in to a 9-1-1 center from a Smart911-registered phone, the additional data is displayed on dispatchers’ screens. The information can also be accessed in the field by firefighters, law enforcement, and emergency medical personnel responding to the emergency.
“Today, over 80 percent of the 9-1-1 calls that come into our center are from wireless phones,” said Hot Spring County 911 Director Robin Halbert. “Smart911 is being implemented in every center in Arkansas, so the profile you create goes with you and will be available to responders anywhere our State.” Because Smart911 is a national database, the information provided also be available anywhere in the nation where Smart911 is being used.
The data included in residents’ free Safety Profile can make a significant difference in how responders approach a situation. Allergies can be listed in a Safety Profile so dispatchers can properly inform emergency medical personnel, even if the caller isn’t able to speak.
Parents can include photographs of their children in their Safety Profiles, allowing dispatchers to send the picture directly to responders enroute to the scene if a child ever goes missing.
“Having information on things like utility and bedroom locations, and pets before we arrive on scene can save valuable time when responding to an emergency,” said Malvern Fire Department Chief Jeremy Harper. “Traditionally, this is information that we have to gather after arriving.”
