Pembina County, ND - County News
County News
Text-to-911 Now Available in Pembina County
Text-to-911 Now Available in Pembina County
By Liz Beck
Pembina County 911 Coordinator
Pembina County has introduced text to 911 service in all communities within the county. In an emergency, dialing 911 is a call for help. But people with hearing loss or those who must remain quiet in a dangerous situation aren’t able to place a call safely or at all. This is why the county has worked with the North Dakota 9-1-1 Association, to improve public safety, and provide an alternative to dialing.
If there is an emergency and you are unable to make a call, remember these steps:
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Don’t text and drive
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In the first text message send the location and type of emergency.
- Text in simple words - Send a short text message in English without abbreviations or slang.
- Be prepared to answer questions and follow instructions from the 9-1-1 call taker.
Some situations where Text to 911 would be appropriate include:
- A caller reporting an emergency is hard of hearing, deaf or speech-impaired
- Voice connectivity is unavailable, but texts can be sent – this is true in some valleys/gorge areas
- Situations when silence is of the utmost importance for your safety– instances of intrusion, abuse or other dangerous situations in which making a phone call would escalate the emergency
Photos or videos cannot be sent via text to 911 at this time. Unlike with phone calls, dispatchers will not automatically receive location information. For this reason, if it is necessary to send a text message it is important to include an accurate location or address in the message as quickly as possible.
Pembina County 911 Dispatch Center can receive and reply to text to 911 messages but they cannot initiate a text message conversation.
For more information on Text to 9-1-1, please visit the ND 911 Association website at https://911.nd.gov/
9-1-1: Call if You Can, Text if You Can’t
Voice Calls to 9-1-1 Are Still the Best and Fastest Way to Contact 9-1-1
