Columbia County adds text-to-911 service
By Terry Murry on Friday, August 25th, 2023 in Columbia Basin News More Top Stories
DAYTON – Columbia County Emergency Services has announced public safety communications can now accept text-to-911.
Texting 911 is intended for use in four emergency situations: an individual is deaf, hard of hearing, or has a speech disability; someone is in a situation where it is not safe to place a voice call to 911; a medical emergency renders the person incapable of speech; or a voice to 911 call cannot be made but a text-to-911 can.
When texting 911, the person should be prepared to answer the questions and follow instructions from the 911 call taker. Keep text messages brief and concise. Do not use abbreviations or emojis. If in a dangerous situation, silence the cell phone immediately.
If sending a text-to-911 from a wireless carrier or a city or county without this service, the person sending the text should receive a “bounce-back” message saying there is no text-to-911 available at this time and place a voice call to 911.
County officials say a rule for people to remember is call if they can, text if they cannot.
