The Federal Communications Commission recently took action to help strengthen and improve the ability of Public Safety Answering Points (PSAPs, or 9-1-1 call centers) to quickly locate wireless 9-1-1 callers and dispatch emergency responders to assist them during emergencies.
More than 240 million 9-1-1 calls, or nearly two-thirds of all calls received by 9-1-1 centers nationwide, are made annually from mobile handheld devices in the United States. As more and more Americans rely on their mobile handheld devices, such as cell phones and smartphones, the FCC says its new rules are essential to ensuring that wireless carriers are taking the necessary steps to provide more accurate 9-1-1 caller locations.
9-1-1 call centers can readily pinpoint the address of most calls made from landline phones, but up to 40 percent of emergency calls made from mobile devices fail to provide accurate caller location information, known as Enhanced 9-1-1 (E9-1-1) service. The Commission unanimously adopted a Second Report and Order that requires wireless carriers to meet the Commission’s wireless location accuracy requirements in more numerous and geographically smaller areas. As a result, wireless 9-1-1 location information will be reported to PSAPs more accurately in many areas throughout the country.
The order requires wireless carriers to provide reliability data on each 9-1-1 call upon the request of a PSAP, which will improve the ability of public safety personnel to assess the accuracy of location information. The Commission’s actions are designed to help save lives by enabling emergency response personnel in many places to reach people who call 9-1-1 from mobile devices sooner.
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