Springfield-Greene County 911 center upgrades will allow callers to send pictures and video to operators via text message

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (KY3) - As technology progresses so does the way we communicate. Soon the way you call 911 for help in Greene County will greatly improve.

“A friend of mine passed out in the hallway above me,” said Sarah.

\She says she’s had to call for help a few times.

“Her 8 year-old was freaking out so I called 911 so he wouldn’t panic,” she said.

“I started at the Greene County Sheriff’s Office in 1991. We took calls from 10 digit lines and we wrote that information on a piece of paper. This is generations ahead of anything that we started with,” said J.R. Webb assistant director, Springfield-Greene County 911 Center.

He says the equipment upgrades allow his department to be supported by the center in Jasper County should the system fail.

“They’re most capable of taking our volume of calls should something catastrophic happen here.”

The upgrades with the system’s software aims to transform the way callers communicate with operators.

“Next Generation allows callers to send video of what’s going on at the time, still pictures, all kinds of multimedia to the 911 operator,” said Webb.

This could provide vital information.

“It can be critical evidence. If you have a picture of someone committing a crime what better piece of evidence than their face right there,” he said.

The will give first responders specific information necessary to provide the exact services needed.

“We’ve been looking in and wanted to do this for a long time. We just recently have had the resources to be able to do it,” said Webb.

Sarah says this capability would have helped her during her friend’s emergency.

“I think it would be a lot easier for people to who don’t know a lot of about medical conditions to tell the people what’s going on,” she said.

“We just want to keep giving the best level of service that we can,” said Webb.

The Springfield-Greene County 911 center takes about 25-thousand calls each month.

The project just got underway this week. It will take another 12 to 18 months to complete. The equipment upgrades were paid for by a grant from the 911 Service Board. The new technology will be covered using the county’s 1/8th cent sales tax.

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