Today (Friday) marks the end of the official first week of 9-1-1 Education Month in Iowa. Throughout April, the Iowa Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management (HSEMD) will be working to demonstrate the importance of the 911 system and the role it plays in ensuring effective emergency response. Iowa’s E911 Program Manager, Blake DeRouchey said educating everyone, including our children is key to their successful use of the system. “It is important that we teach our children when it is appropriate to dial 911 and what to tell the call taker when they do call,” he said. “This is a practice that needs to be ingrained at an early age.” The most important things every caller should remember is to stay calm and relate their location; this is crucial when calling from a cell phone. Accurately relaying your location will ensure that emergency responders arrive in a timely manner, which can mean the difference between life and death. And as we move into the future, state agencies continue to develop systems that keep pace with changing technology. Within the past year, the Iowa Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management introduced a pilot program to test new technology that will allow a cell phone user within a specific county’s boundaries to contact 911 through text messaging. All of the call centers in nine Iowa counties participated in testing the program. More information about the state’s 911 system and links to websites and social media accounts that will be providing updates throughout the month of April are available below.
Ready Iowa www.beready.iowa.gov
NENA www.nena.org
Twitter #911education
