Your call for help might not always get to 911
Rhode Island averages 14-hundred 911 emergency calls a day. More than half from cell phones. But how effective is the state's new tracking system?
A lot of us buy cells phones as a lifeline in case of emergency, but your phone could fail you when you need it most. There was a frightening 911 call in Arizona. A woman about to be sexually assaulted uses her cell phone to call for help, but operators cannot locate her- instead listening, in horror, as the attack happens.
Here at home, a better outcome- emergency crews rescue three teenagers after their kayak capsizes in a Warwick pond. 911 operators were able to locate the cell phone caller thanks to our GPS tracker system.
The technology has been in place since 2001 and can locate a cell phone caller within seconds, right down to the street. In some cities, operators can even call up a computer generated picture of your house. But Eyewitness News has learned the system does not always work.
We put the tracker system to the test:
"I hope you can track this call before my connection drops"
And they did- operators were able to track our caller down to the cross streets. But a Pawtucket caller wasn't as lucky- operators traced her 2 blocks away.
When you dial 911 on your cell phone aGPS chip in your phone sends your location via satellite to the operators. On a sunny day, the connection is clear, but in bad weather tracking you down may not be easy.
Raymond Labelle, RI 911 Executive Director:
"Today being cloudy, overcast and rainy, one of these calls was a little bit off"
Operators were more than a little bit off when our Newport caller phoned. They could hear her, but they couldn't find her. The problem? She used a 4-year old phone that does not have the GPS chip. Most phones made after 2001 come equipped with the tracker system but a GPS chip cannot be installed into an older phone. Although buying a new phone means money out of your pocket, Labelle says it's worth it. The cash could save your life.
Federal regulations require all phones to have gps tracker by next December. But if you have an older phone without the chip, 911 can only track your location if you take control. You should always tell them your location first.
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