OMG 9-1-1 PLZ… The Pluses of Emergency Texting

Kids everywhere in the U.S. are taught from a young age to call 9-1-1 in case of emergency. It’s universally known that when you need help, that’s who you call (unless there are ghosts…then you call someone else). These days kids along with everyone else are taught from a young age about texting. You text your mom when you forgot what she asked you to get at the grocery store, you text your kids when you realize they left the grocery list at home, I even see grandparents texting. When you’ve got something to say but you aren’t in a situation where you can say it out loud, you text it. Thus is the basis for texting 9-1-1. People aren’t always able to say it aloud when they’re in trouble.

Buckwheat: Quick, what’s the number for 9-1-1?

However, technology is ever expanding and according to FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski it’s “time to bring 911 into the Digital Age.”

Neo’s code for digitally dialing 9-1-1 (or putting on sunglasses..it gets confusing)

So how will this work in real life? Let’s say you’re in your American History 101 class. It’s 8am and your teacher is drolling on about some old white dudes who blew stuff up. By now you’re regretting not taking the history course online. Suddenly killer birds straight out of an Alfred Hitchcock movie fly in through the window and start attacking everyone while making unnecessarily loud bird noises! Well you can’t call 9-1-1 and chat about it because Toucan Sam is trying to bite your face off! This would be the perfect time to text 9-1-1.

Totally plausible classroom bird attack

But how often do birds display that amount of aggression? All jokes aside, there are plenty of times when texting 9-1-1 would legitimately help out a situation; if someone breaks into your house and you don’t want them to hear you call for help, if there is a crisis like the Virginia Tech shootings, or you’re in a very loud setting (bird attacks, aside).  Another example is with Hurricane Katrina. People who were stranded weren’t able to make phone calls because the cell towers were flooded, but they could still text.  This service will also be convenient for the deaf.

The only con I’ve heard so far is about the cost of texting. Let’s think this one through. You don’t get charged when you call any emergency service, so why would you via text? And even if you did, is your safety really not worth the 50 cents that text will cost?

Overall I think this is a good idea. I just wonder how long it will take before I can say “Wild bird attack? There’s an app for that.” Though expecting to say “Need to dail 9-1-1? There’s an app for that,” might be a bit more realistic.