Key Points:

• Arizona implements “Next Generation 911” system statewide

• System provides accurate location of callers within three feet

• The system is funded by a 20-cent-a-line tax on all phones

Arizona has implemented the final elements of its “Next Generation 911” system, designed to ensure that cell phone users have as much access to the emergency system as those calling from homes or offices.

Officials from the state Department of Administration, which played a role in crafting and implementing the $48.5 million system, said on Sept. 29 that there is now full statewide coverage, with the exception of the Navajo and Hopi tribal communities. But Elizabeth Alvorado-Thorson, the agency’s director, said it’s more than being able to call for emergency help with a cell phone.

She said the system can locate someone within three feet. It also has the capacity to receive text calls — something that can be helpful when a phone battery is dying — as well as accept video and audio, allowing a dispatcher to see and hear what is actually happening.

“This enables emergency operators to triage emergency services and help first responders prepare for what they will be walking into,” Alvarado-Thorson said during a presentation at the Chandler Police Department.

That auto-locating feature, she said, enables the call to be quickly routed to the appropriate dispatch center “to send help when and where needed.”

Even users who remain wired into the system should benefit. Alvorado-Thorson said the system is programmed to find the actual location of the call “instead of pulling some outdated billing address.”

There are other benefits.

Alvorado-Thorson said the advanced 911 system is set up so that even if a phone cable is severed or downed, it does not cut off emergency calls to an entire community.

Melissa Deanda, assistant Chandler police chief, said the ability of callers to send pictures provides another big plus.

“We’ve had several calls of missing people,” she said. “Just being able to have that family member text us a photo of the person that’s missing, and for us to send that image to the responding officers, it just gives them a visual clue that they’re looking for.”

She said the system can also provide a “seamless” transition among area dispatch centers in the event of an emergency, a surge in calls, or even a need to evacuate.

In a prepared statement, Yavapai County Sheriff David Rhodes called it “a game changer for sheriff’s deputies across the state.”

“Our deputies often patrol rural areas,” said Rhodes, who is president of the Arizona Sheriffs Association. “Having this technology allows those men and women to respond as quickly as possible to potentially life-threatening events.”

Overall, 79 dispatch centers are operating on the Next Generation system. They handle calls for 131 law enforcement agencies, 179 fire departments, 13 ambulance services and 20 parks and recreation agencies.

Funding for the upgrade came from a 20-cent-a-line tax on all phones — including cellphones — which raised $25.9 million. The state also got another $22.5 million in federal funds.

That levy is still being collected, with officials at the Department of Administration saying it will “support further 911 innovations.” They also noted that the funds can help some tribal communities that have not yet been fully upgraded for 911 service.

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